Would you be so kind to help me up, honey?
by jesse22
Summary: He couldn't believe his eyes: She was back...after so many years and the secret she reveals would change his world forever. He is a father...wait! what? All the more troubling: this dark skinned demon apparently seemed hell bent on taking his whole life on a roller coaster ride.
1. Chapter 1

So here is my new story. I am not really satisfied with how this chapter turned out... I hope you like it anyway. This story is going to be a romantic one like I promised, but I am not entirely sure if I want to make it humorous or dramatic or...even though I think it will turn out with a little humor...hence the title :D:D

I would really appreciate it if you leave a comment.

I don't own Bleach or any other characters.

I might have to change the rating later on. Depends on whether I decide to make it more smexy or not :D

And I'm not sure how long this will turn out...depends on the feedback I think. But then again maybe not :D:D

* * *

"Hey there, Byakuya-bo."

He couldn't believe his ears. His heart skipped a few beats and began racing as if to make up for the loss. Has his mind finally snapped and he is imagining things? But this voice…

The voice of the woman he loved once. Not that he had ever admitted that out loud. But then she vanished and he was left alone. And now the only thing that reminded him of her were the wounds the news of her disappearance had clashed into his heart.

"Time will heal all wounds", they said. But it doesn't. It merely dulls the pain. But it doesn't take away the yearning. The first years after she had left he would lie in his bed in the middle of a dark night. With no other things present to witness his agony but his own breathing and labored heart beat. And lying there he wouldn't be able to hold the cold darkness down anymore as it gripped his heart. He had done everything to forget her. But a heart that loved once will never forget the object of its desire.

And even now as a grown up man everything came back to him with the sound of her voice.

And the funny thing about this situation was that he may have had expected his heart to hurt again; to torture him when she finally came back, but he had never expected the feelings he had right now. It felt like she never left. He could feel the hope and longing running through his veins and affecting his system. And he hated himself for it. He hated how his body felt so…relieved. Like a huge weight that fell of his shoulders and he weighted next to nothing. Why would he feel like that after everything she had done to him? Why would he be glad that she was back?

He turned around slowly. He refused to let her see the tumult that was going on inside of him. His eyes betrayed nothing. They were smooth and clear like the water of a resting lake.

"Yoruichi" Her name left a nostalgic taste on his lips.

And there she was. Like a devil. His nightmare. His sweetest dream. The one woman that could turn his world upside down with a single look or smile. And it seemed as if they were back to level one. As he stared at the dark beauty sitting casually at his table he noticed the small changes time carved into her appearance. Her hair was longer. It fell over her shoulders in luscious waves of purple and he could tell that they were smooth as silk without actually touching them. Not that he wouldn't want…

_Damn it!_ This woman always got to him. But he refused to be controlled by her. No. The times he played by her rules were over. He would teach her to show some respect to him. He was the Head of the Kuchiki clan now after all.

He looked right into her eyes to keep his thoughts from going astray, but it didn't prove to be very wise. Her eyes glistened with some hidden knowledge and…amusement? He instantly felt drawn to them. Their mysterious depths luring him…maybe…just maybe…_they_ could…

**No! **She was doing it again. He could feel the anger pooling inside of him. The nerve of that woman…

"What do you want?" His voice was cold, betraying no emotion.

"I only wanted to visit an old friend and tell him that I'm back."

"Message received. You may go."

She couldn't help but laugh at that. _My, my Byakuya. Aren't we a little grumpy? But just you wait…_

He lost himself in this sound. It reminded him of the times she used to come to his mansion to play tag. She used to laugh that very same laugh. So carefree…so shameless. And he caught himself enjoying it.

He felt a sudden gust of wind and in the blink of an eye she was beside him. Shock ran through every fiber of his body, freezing him into immobility. And clearly enjoying herself she leaned up with a mischievous glint in her eyes to whisper into his ear. He suppressed a shiver as he felt her breath at the side of his face. She paused; stretching out the moment.

"As you wish…"

And she was gone.

* * *

This was the pilot of the story. I had to find a scenario for Yoruichi's return. I tried to keep them in character but you will have to tell me if I suceeded or not :D I know that there are some people that don't really like my writing style but that won't stop me from posting anyway :P :D But if you have some constructive critisism or ideas I would like to hear your oppinion.

I take requests BTW so if there is someone who wants me to write something please contact me. I like challanges :D:D


	2. Chasing You

Here is the second chapter of my story. Hope you like it. I don't own Bleach. Enjoy^^

* * *

It was a peaceful day in Soul Society. There were no mayor disturbances, everybody got along well and the people strolled aimlessly through the streets. The sun shone brightly and the birds were singing. Everything was quiet…

"Aaaaah!"

A sudden gust of wind ripped through the crowd of people on the streets. A few stumbled to the side and wondered what just happened. Clothes billowed and prevented their owner from seeing anything for a few seconds. Confused, most people resumed what they were doing feeling unsure of the recent happenings.

A few feet away a single man stood and sighed. Contrary to the other he had seen the two figures that had raced past him at an amazingly high speed. And he knew exactly what was going on. Another sigh left his lips but instead of a frown, which would have been expected to accompany his sigh, a smile tugged at his lips and his grey mustache moved up a little.

"They are at it again."

* * *

_Whoosh._*

They raced through a nearby forest. He couldn't believe that she got him to do this.

_The day had begun like every other day. Byakuya rose early and left his mansion at the usual time to head for the sixth division. His lieutenant wasn't there yet, which wasn't that big of a surprise. Renji Abarai had a unique talent. He was a professional at arriving too late. But to his credit his mind seemed to reach its highest potential when it came to making up creative excuses, which seem to be a necessary side effect when you're always late. But to Renji's luck Byakuya couldn't care less, because most of the excuses were hardly plausible and Byakuya didn't want to waste his breath on chastising his subordinate. _

_He began with his paperwork but he was making slow progress. Later when Abarai finally arrived he hadn't finished more than two sides. And even Abarai noticed that something was on his captain's mind. Because he didn't even acknowledge Renji after he presented his new excuse which he spend almost half an hour trying to think up. It's not like his captain answers when Renji is speaking to him but he usually shows him in some way that he didn't give a damn about what happened; little signs, like a raised eyebrow or a quick glance (which would be much considering his cold demeanor.)_

_But this time the noble stared out of the window and didn't move a muscle. Deciding that he should consider himself lucky and shouldn't draw unwanted attention to himself Abarai sat down at his desk and began sorting a few papers to make himself look busy. _

_Byakuya meanwhile didn't notice anything as he was trying to concentrate on the papers in front of him. But instead of actually reading them his thoughts strayed to the unusual visitor he had had a few days ago. The moment she left him standing there his mind seemed to refuse to obey his will and constantly returned to her. The way she looked, the way she smiled, the way her eyes…_

_He sighed. Why couldn't he get this woman out of his head for once? He had work to do. He had no time for this. _

_After ten more fruitless minutes he decided that taking a walk and getting some fresh air would be best for him. Abarai looked up as Byakuya stood to leave the office. "Taicho…" "I will go and take a walk. Take care of the rest of the paperwork and bring it to Hitsugaya-taicho as soon as you're finished, he's waiting for it." Without another word Byakuya left. He didn't wait for his lieutenant to say anything. _

_He walked aimlessly through the streets of Sereitei and tried to clear his head for just a few minutes, (so it appeared to him), when it happened. Sighing again for what felt like the millionth time that day, he turned around._

"_What do you want?"_

_Standing behind him was none other than Yoruichi Shihoin. She laughed at his bold question. Her laugh turned into a smirk and she started walking slowly towards Byakuya with her eyes fixed on his face, challenging him. His eyes narrowed. No way he will back down or take a step back for that matter. Yoruichi walked right up to him and stopped merely inches away, their bodies almost touching. Tension making the air grow thick. Her smirk grew even wider. _

"_I love your pride you know." She whispered those words in a low voice. His facial expression didn't move even though he wondered if she had just heard his heart rate increase with that cat-like hearing of hers. _

"_Oh come on, Byakuya!" She laughed and danced around him with light steps. Floating over the asphalt like a fairy. He rolled his eyes. Damn that obnoxious woman, she was giving him a headache. "As if you didn't want to see me. You walked all the way from your squad to my estate after all." Just then he noticed his surroundings, and true enough he was standing a few feet away from the gates of the Shihoin mansion. He hadn't noticed his feet taking him here and cursed himself inwardly at his thoughtlessness. _

_After a few seconds of awkward silence Yoruichi whirled around and looked at him meaningful. Noticing here glance he raised an eyebrow. _

"_Up for a little game?", she asked with a smirk and disappeared only to reappear behind him. "I am no longer interested in your childish games." He turned to leave and started walking in the direction of his own home. _

_She sighed. "Too bad…and here I was thinking you wanted to defend the honor of the Kuchiki family", she said in a fake regretting voice (sounds odd…:D)._

"_What is that supposed to mean?" _

_Yoruichi giggled. -_Success!- _She knew that he wouldn't be able to resist asking._

"_Well...my family has always excelled at shunpo and various other kinds of games." -_Now finish him!- _"But you don't need to play such childish games…you will never get to see a Shihoin being beaten by a Kuchiki anyway." She flipped her hair over her shoulder and threw him a casual look. His expression was surprised at first but changed into a serious one in a matter of seconds. A staring match began. Dead silence fell upon them. The wind blew and rustled their clothes. No one dared to breathe or move. Passersby sneaked of, keeping a suspicious eye on the two nobles staring each other down in the middle of the street. A broom ("Howl, Zambimarubroom" :D:D ok…*cough*…back to the story) fell and a resounding noise filled the air. And as if it served as some kind of secret signal both nobles flashed into action and the chase began._

* * *

And now, after they had crossed half of Sereitei, they were racing through vast fields and forests. _I'll show her for messing with me. _Byakuya pushed further and gained ground on Yoruichi. They were merely inches apart now. Byakuya reached out to touch a strand of her hair that was billowing behind her in the wind of their race. He could practically taste victory on his tongue as his fingers brushed over the soft texture of…

She changed directions and he had to slow down to prevent himself from falling out of surprise. She looked over her shoulder and laughed softly as she ran around several trees in a zig zag pattern. He followed her at high speed. _I can't believe I let myself get distracted like that! _

Suddenly they were out on a wide, open field. Yoruichi loved to run. She could feel the wind in her face and hair. But what she loved most about running was the exhilaration of pure adrenalin running through her veins. The way her heart pumped harder and faster, her muscles straining, bristling with power as she pushed herself forward. She loved the feel of freedom. As if she could go anywhere she wanted, as if nothing could stop her as she raced forward. She felt like a queen, as if she ruled the world. When she was a little kid she wanted to run fast enough so that nobody could see her, that she was invisible to anyone, so she'd become invincible. It had made her happy to run back then and it still did.

Now most people would think she loved to run because she couldn't stand her duties and tried to escape from the social pressure coming with her name, that she was afraid of responsibility, but that was just plain wrong. She actually had a rather strong sense of duty and held her morals in high regard. The thing about it was the way she defined duty. Her friends and all the other people, that had a special place in her heart, were very important for her. She would do anything to protect and care for them. What did a noble name and status mean if there was no one she could speak to, laugh and share her troubles and joys with? On its own it was just an empty shell. Beautiful to look at from the outside but unbearable for a yearning heart. So she decided long ago that if she ever had to choose she wouldn't think twice and follow her heart wherever it would take her.

Of course running wasn't always the same for Yoruichi. There were different types of running:

Running just for the heck of it, which she did mostly when she was bored or just felt like it.

Necessary Running (her least favorite), when she needed to escape quickly in a fight or when she had to rush to aid her friends in battle. In her last battle with Soifon it had surely been necessary for her to run even though the petite hornet didn't stand a chance against her former and once-again master in the end.

Playful Running, like a little game of tag or something; just some lighthearted running with a good friend of hers.

And Running with Byakuya.

Running with him was something unique to her. She just loved teasing him and prided herself in knowing exactly which buttons to press to make him chase after her. The fire burning in his eyes and his unbreakable will and desire to catch her, to show her that he was better than her, always send shivers down her spine. She could feel his pursue behind her, his presence just barely a breath away, setting her blood on fire. Byakuya was the only one that could evoke that special feeling inside of her and she loved every minute of it. When they were younger she used to come to him to play, to make him lose control. Blowing away that always polite and neat mask of his and knowing that she was the only one that could do it was enough for her to always come back…at first. Soon she found herself addicted to those playing sessions. On a miserable day he was her cure. When he chased her all around Sereitei she forgot all her worries and she always looked forward to the next time. During her time in the human world she sometimes caught herself longing for another game of tag. Of course it was all about the game. It wasn't about seeing him again…or so she thought. Till she saw him again that day in his mansion…saw the way he had changed over the years and grown into quite a handsome man…

Yoruichi smiled at that thought. But that smile vanished abruptly as Byakuya appeared in front of her. Diving to her right she barely escaped crashing into him. _How did he…? _She turned around slightly surprised.

Noticing Byakuya smirking she cocked her head to the side. "You're underestimating me." "Am I? Now I didn't see you catching me." With this said she flash stepped away again and started a new round. Byakuya raced after her pushing faster than before.

Yoruichi felt him going faster and answered his action with an increase of her own speed. But instead of falling behind Byakuya still went faster. Astonished by his newfound speed she pushed herself further. Soon they were both feeling their limit approach but none of them wanted to give up. Exhaustion slowly crawled its way up their bones after endless minutes of headless running. But the knowledge that they wouldn't last much longer only made them strain themselves harder. They were nearly flying through the trees now. Suddenly the forest ended and they ran through the streets again.

A few meters up the road the sixth squad office could be seen. And as if coming to a silent agreement they raced towards it in some kind of showdown before the finish line. Both could only think of winning now. They gave the last scraps of their energy. Byakuya knew that he had only seconds left to catch her and fixed his eyes on her back. They were nearly on equal ground now.

"OOOOI, KUCHIKI-TAICHO!"

They stopped short and Byakuya nearly knocked Yoruichi over. Byakuya looked at his lieutenant with a calm face, boiling with rage on the inside. That man always appeared at the most unfitting times. _I nearly had her…_

Yoruichi nearly laughed out loud as she saw Byakuya's face. Most wouldn't notice the tiny changes in his face that told her so much about his current thoughts, like the subtle tension of his facial muscles. But she knew that man maybe better than herself and she knew that he was annoyed right now…extremely annoyed. Hiding her smile she turned to look at Abarai and her smile turned into a grin. Standing next to the lieutenant of the sixth squad was none other than the captain of the second division, Soifon.

"Now, now. What are you two doing here together? ," asked Yoruichi and wriggled her eyebrows suggestively. Soifon looked to the side and blushed faintly to Yoruichi's amazement. But before Yoruichi could start probing Abarai butted in to prevent her. "Ano…Taicho. I have an extremely important message from Ukitake-taicho. I was searching for you and asked Soifon-taicho if she knew where you were…and…" Renji's face match his hair by now and Byakuya didn't want to wait for him to stutter himself into oblivion so he held up a hand to stop his subordinate from talking further.

"And where is this message?" A slight strain could be heard in his voice indicating the end of his patience.

"I…I have it right here…" The red head began searching his pockets. "I put it right here…Huh? I knew I put it there…a second please…"

Byakuya concentrated hard on not breaking his demeanor. He breathed in slowly. "Aba…" "Here it is!" Laughing embarrassed Renji handed the note to his captain.

Byakuya read the message and sighed. "Abarai…it says he wants me to meet him at 3 PM." Renji looked up at his captain confused. "And?"

"That was two hours ago." Byakuya stated matter-of-fact. "I might have taken a little longer to find you then expected." Renji laughed and rubbed the back of his head, hoping inwardly that he won't be punished. Because the Kuchiki-noble may not often punish him but if he did his punishments were terrible. Shuddering at the memory of his latest punishment Renji tried to block these thoughts out of his mind.

Yoruichi, who was highly amused by the situation, skipped to Byakuya's side. "What a pity. It looks like you're too busy to have a little _fun _with me." Soifon's eyes widen and you could see in her face that she was scandalized by those words. Yoruichi couldn't help but laugh at the glare Soifon send Byakuya after that.

Closing his eyes exasperated Byakuya turned to leave. "I have business to attend to now. Go play with somebody else."

"But Byakuya…" The tone in her voice made him sneak a glance at her. Her eyes were glittering with some secret intention and Byakuya was instantly caughed by their golden depths.

"You know that you're the only one for me."

* * *

I wanted to go deeper into Yoruichi's psyche in this chapter, cause I noticed that many fics focus on Byakuya so here's my try^^ Comments are appreciated as always :D


	3. Snowfight

Happy V-Day everyone! :D I am soooo sorry it took so long to update...but I

got the story all figured out now so I will never take that long ever again.

So please go ahead and enjoy :D

_

* * *

_

_"The universe officially hates me..."_

As Byakuya looked out of the vast window of his room snowflakes were making their way down from heaven. But to Byakuya it felt like they were coming straight from hell itself. He **hated **snow. Not that he minded the cold or anything but he hated how it turned to muddy heaps when it started to melt and that it seemed to motivate all kinds of foolish people to throw with it

...and he remembered that **she **loved it. Yet he refuse to admit that this was the only real reason he disliked snow.

Sighing he turned his back on the window to adjust his clothes one last time before he made his way to the 6th division.

Ukitake had informed him of some strange happenings a few days ago when he came to meet him. Two hours too late in fact as his lieutenant had failed to inform him in time; which had annoyed Byakuya to no end. He hated being late. And he hated people who were responsible for him being late. So naturally Renji had been in for one hell of a punishment. And despite Byakuya's usual collected and hard mask he had nearly laughed out loud when he had told his subordinate that he talked to Kurotsuchi-taicho and that he had agreed to send him a little help to his lab. Abarai's face had been priceless when he told him that he was the lucky one. Now Byakuya wasn't a potentially evil person so he released his lieutenant from his suffering after a day of consideration.

But regarding the strange happenings he still had a bad feeling. Children were disappearing. And when children were involved the society knew no mercy. They expected the Gotei to do something, they expected them to find those responsible as quickly as possible. And if they took too long the citizens would get restless fearing that their children will be the next victims. That would be the last thing Byakuya needed right now: raging citizens.

But besides the one part worrying because it was his job to protect Soul Society and even their smallest of habitants, there was another part of him that seemed to be missing something.

He remembered that part all too well. It began fourteen years ago it was just a small feeling at first but it developed into something more soon.

It almost felt like a tug at his heart. And at times that feeling would return.

He had thought it was because of her at first but after a while he realised that the hole she had ripped may also be there in his heart but it was something different from this light tug. This sensation wasn't as painful as the memory of her last return which was coincidentally 14 years ago...but he refused to think about it.

It seemed like some kind of reminder; like there was something that wasn't right, something out of place.

And now this tug was back. It made him feel uncomfortable as if he should know what it was. Almost as if something important to him was in danger.

* * *

He had just walked outside of his mansion as a suspicious sound ripped him out of his thoughts and he turned around.

Suddenly something cold hit his face and everything turned immediately recognized the sound of the laugh that now filled the air. He cursed inwardly; that obnoxious woman. What was she doing? Was she stalking him or something? She just had a talent for appearing when he wanted to see her the least.

He slowly wiped the snow out of his face and glared at the woman standing a few feets away from him. As she saw his icy stare she launched into another fresh round of laughter.

"Aww, Byakuya-bo. I think that snow really suits you."

He ignored her and continued walking, carefull not to look at her.

_She'll regret that sooner than she thinks._

She sighed and began to walk into the direction of the Kuchiki manor.

"I didn't come here because of you anyway." With a grin she slowly turned her head to look at the nobleman. "My grandmo..." - _Splash- _

Yoruichi nearly fell down the stairs she was currently ascending in surprise; her mouth wide open. Shocked she looked at the stoic captain before her.

Eyes still widened she saw him standing at the exact same spot he was previously standing but with a fresh snowball in his hand and, if her eyes didn't betray her, a smug smile on his face.

His eyes seemed to mock her as he opened his mouth to speak: "You shouldn't let your guard down like this. People might take advantage of it."

Yoruichi started laughing yet again, Byakuya enjoyed the sound, it was jovial and resounded in his ears like a bell.

"You'll regret challenging me, Byakuya-bo."

With a smirk Byakuya disappeared and Yoruichi chased after him. And as she chased him to the office of the 6th division she couldn't help herself but notice that she loved their reversed roles. Being the one chasing, the hunter, for once.

Suddenly Byakuya stopped dead in his tracks. As Yoruichi raced towards him a little part of her wondered why he stopped but she continued on her way anyway. And as she reached out to touch his shoulder and began to open her mouth to proclaim her triumph, he turned around at lightning speed, grabbed her wrist and whirled her around in his grasp.

Surprised by his boldness and that he had actually managed to catch her off guard, Yoruichi didn't make a move to escape him.

"You've become slow. Maybe your age finally begins to show."

_He's teasing me!_

And the weirdest part about this situation was, that she found herself liking it.

"That's coming from the man who couldn't catch me a few days back."

But her giggling stopped short as Byakuya's hand came up to her face with snow ready to be pressed into it.

In a second Yoruichi freed herself and hurled her body over his in a gracefull spin.

Landing right behind him she grabbed a handful of snow and wanted to give him a taste of his own medicine but he moved away quickly and reappeared right next to her.

"Seems like you two are having fun."

Both turned around to see whose voice it was that interrupted them.

The first thing they saw was a pink haori and they both immediately knew who they were dealing with.

"Kyoraku-taicho what do you want?"

Yoruichi smirked. _Acting all cold again all of a sudden?_

Shunsui chuckled, but tried to pull himself together as Byakuya looked at him with a raised eyebrow and a look that clearly said: Get to business.

With a grin he started to inform the two why he was sent to them in the first place.

"Yamamoto-taicho is gathering all the captains to have an important meeting. The meeting will start in an hour. I'll have to go now to contact the others"

With tears in his eyes he started to walk away. "...or Nanao-chan will punish me again."

But before he completely vanished out of sight he turned around abruptly.

"Oh I forgot to mention that you're requested to be there too, Yoruichi."

Yourich could tell by the look in Byakuya's eyes that he was anything but pleased with the outlook of Yoruichi participating in the meeting.

What Yourichi didn't know was that he was actually thinking that he wouldn't be able to pay attention to the meeting with her present.

* * *

There was a tense atmosphere in the room. Some taichos were whispering in low voices while others just stayed silent. What they all got in common though was the worried look on their faces. It was a rarity for the Captain-Commander to call the whole Gotei together and additionally Yoruichi, which made some of them even more anxious seeing as she was an expert in the arts of stealth. That meant that the situation was growing more threatening than they would have liked to admit.

Exspecially Unohana-taicho seemed to be deep in thought. No one was touched by the situation as much as Unohana was. Her deep care for other people and motherly heart made her feel with the vanished children and their parents, and you could tell by looking into her eyes that she longed for them to be safe and well. She would do anything she could to get them back.

Yoruichi admired that trait of hers; her love for people she never met.

And as she walked into the room she grabbed the hand of the gentle lady and squeezed it encouragingly as she walked by.

Byakuya wasn't there yet which had Yoruichi worried even though she wouldn't even admit that to her own heart.

She sat down next to Ukitake and waited for the meeting to begin. She wasn't really in the mood to talk to the other captains right now and every once in a while she caught herself scanning the room for the arrival of a certain somebody.

"May I ask what has you so on edge today?"

Yoruichi nearly jumped up in surprise as the gentle voice of Ukitake disturbed her thoughts. Usually no one would be startled by his voice; it was soft and soothing even though it could be strong when times demanded it.

"It's nothing really." Trying to cover her embarassment with a smile she turned her head to meet the white-haired man's eyes.

"I was just thinking about the meeting. I want to know why Yamamoto-taicho wanted me to be here too and what I can do to help you because technically I'm not a member of the Gotei anymore."

Silence fell as Yoruichi stopped talking and as the seconds ticked by she realized that she couldn't fool him no matter how smooth her lies were.

A small understanding smile spread across his lips. "Don't worry he'll be here soon he's never late."

Yoruichi gave him an incredulous look.

When did everybody become so damn insightful? Had she become that predictable in the last years? And how did they know it was him? Was she this obvious?

She hated having her feelings and inner thoughts out in the open she prefered to keep things hidden. Maybe that was one thing she had always held onto from her past time as the leader of the Onmitsukido.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Just as Ukitake started to open his mouth to reply the door opened and the Kuchiki noble entered the room.

Her attention immediately zeroed in on the captain as he made his way over to his usual spot; all the time carefull not to meet her gaze and to ignore her completely.

A smile danced over the dark-skinned lady's features.

He hadn't changed. He was just as stubborn as he was when he was young.

Ukitake threw her a knowing glance and shook his head lightly. Those two were just too proud for their own good.

* * *

Ten minutes later the Captain-Commander finally appeared. Everyone grew silent immediately.

He took a deep breath before he began to speak and Yoruichi couldn't help but notice that he looked as old as he was for once. It seemed like he hadn't had much sleep lately, seeing as the cases of missing children began to increase.

"Let's get straight to the point. You all know why I called you here. It seems like we are facing a new crisis. We have to find those criminals as soon as possible to free the children. Or to lay them to rest in the arms of their parents."

Glances were exchanged at his words.

"We have to stay realistic. There has been no trace, not a single sign regarding the whereabout of those children and we have to prepare for the worst. We may be too late. But it is our duty to try anything we can to return those children to their parents; to lead them back home safely."

Yoruichi looked up at Yamamoto in wonder. His voice was so....passionate?

Was that the right word? He had always appeared so indifferent to her; so calm and reasonable; a rock that would never move no matter how furious the waves ripped and teared at it.

She couldn't help but wonder if he had children. Cause she couldn't imagine that his deep passion to save these children came from pure professionalism.

As she thought about that a massive pain raced through her heart and she banned these thoughts quickly.

"...and search whole Soul Society if we have to."

With a jolt she noticed that she missed what he had said previously and hoped that it had been nothing all too important.

"Every division will get a certain sector to search through. I prepared a map with all the imformation you need. It will be send to your office as soon as this meeting is over. The fourth division will split and send at least two of their people to the different divisions, so that at least one of them will be present in case the children are found and need immediate medical care."

Unohana nodded and Yamamoto continued.

"Now you might be curious as to why I asked Yoruichi to be present too."

All eyes turned to look at her; all except for two.

"Seeing as Yoruichi is a very experienced leader and skilled in finding missing persons, she will help us and provide advice for you in the matters of how to arrange your teams efficiently. If that is ok with you that is."

The way he said that left no doubt that he would never accept a "no".

"I will do anything I can to help you; seeing as you have accepted me back into your circle so kindly."

Satisfied he turned back to talk to the others.

"Now if there are no further questions you should head back to work. We have no time to waste. You're dismissed."

All the captains walked to the exit slowly and wondered about this strange meeting. Yamamoto had seem so different and his words had been short and straight to the point. They couldn't shove the feeling away that the situation was going to become a lot more dangerous than they thought.

* * *

Once Byakuya was outside he headed straight to his office. He didn't stop to talk to the other captains or to wait for that woman to get to him.

After a while he could see the roof of his division and was starting to feel relieved that he had managed to get here without any disturbances.

"Thought you could escape me?"

He would have groaned in annoyance had he not refused to let her have that satisfaction.

She chuckled. "We're not finished after all. I have yet to make you regret challenging me."

He turned around to see her standing in the middle of the street grinning smugly.

"You know as well as I do that we have work to do."

"And you should know as well as I do that we should have fun once in a while so we can get to work fresh and relaxed so we can do our best."

Byakuya's expression didn't change.

"The keywords being _once in a while_." He stated matter-of-fact.

Yoruichi's grin turned into a smirk and she lowered her eyes seductively.

"Seeing as you're all focused on work. Want me to give you some advice?"

He looked at her disgusted and turned around to walk away.

"You seem to be turning your back on me quite a lot lately. Don't you think it's getting a little old?"

She shunpoed away and his eyes widened as he looked around carefully.

No doubt she had something planned in that devilish mind of hers.

His muscles strained as he waited for her to make her move. The atmosphere grew tense. His eyes flashed from one side to the other and he concentrated on everything that surrounded him. No way he was going to give that woman an opportunity to ambush him.

A small gust of wind caressed his robes and his muscles kicked into action. He spinned around and barely avoided Yoruichi as she tried to grab him.

Before she recovered from her failed attempt he turned and raced into the direction of his office to get away from her. But she appeared right before him and he changed his direction. He knew exactly what she wanted. She wanted to keep him away from his office.

Sooner than he could think he was racing over a field full of snow.

_Feels like history repeating. I have to get back to my division somehow._

A startled gasp escaped his lips as suddenly Yoruichi appeared right beside him. Her eyes shined with the knowledge of her impending victory.

Byakuya cursed inwardly and tried to avoid her but it was too late. He could feel her arms wind around his waist and her weight pressing into his side as she threw him off balance.

It felt like they were falling in slow motion and as they crashed onto the ground together the snow softened their impact; but the cold soaked through their clothes immediately and made them cling to their bodys uncomfortably.

But Byakuya didn't notice that as he was too busy trying to ignore the warmth coming from Yoruichi lying flush on top of him; or rather to ignore that he liked it.

Byakuya could feel the tremor that shook her body as she laughed. Frowning he shoved her aside and tried to get up.

But just as he placed his second foot on the ground he slipped on a small piece of ice that must have been hidden under the snow and landed on his back unceremoniously.

As he lifted his eyes he saw Yoruichi staring at him wide-eyed.

Seconds later she burst into full blown laughter. She held her stomach and tears started to form in her eyes as she could barely breathe.

A miniscule blush formed on his cheeks and he stood back up quickly.

Seeing Byakuya attempting to leave, Yoruichi heaved herself up with great effort since she was still laughing loudly.

Stumbling towards him she grabbed his shoulder to hold herself upright and continued laughing.

She looked up into his eyes and her laughter died on her lips immediately as she realized how close they were.

Confused at Yoruichi's sudden change of moods he stared right into her eyes.

And as she looked deep into his eyes and saw the look he used to give her when they were young and the confusion and worry hidden deep inside of them an immense sadness descended upon her heart.

Byakuya immediately saw the sadness that suddenly glittered in her eyes and as she stepped even closer to him and laid one of her hands against his chest; right over his heart...were those tears he saw there?

His heart throbed painfully. And the longing to comfort her and wipe her tears away ripped through him violently.

"Byakuya..." It was barely above a whisper and he could hear the memory of a great pain tightly woven into the tune of her voice.

"I....I have done something horrible."

* * *

Mwhaha! I'm so evil! I made so many implications I can't help but laugh!

The story will be romantic btw...and a little dramatic at times and near the

end it will turn adventurous but I like humor so don't worry it will be in there

too:D Oh and the chaps will get longer too :D

Review please...makes it feel like somebody really wants to read my

stories.


	4. Fourteen years ago Part 1

I may change the summary and title of the story so don't get confused :D This chapter didn't turn out to be as long as I wanted it but I'll make sure that the next one is longer...sry :D

I hope you enjoy it anyway.

* * *

_"I...I have done something horrible."_

Shocked, he stared at her wide-eyed. His mouth had gone dry making him unable to speak as his pulse quickened. Yoruichi buried her face in his chest and he couldn't move.

Something horrible? What could she have possibly done that got her, one of the strongest woman he had ever met, to burst into tears?

He barely breathed, afraid to disturb her further. He was clearly overwhelmed by the situation. Was he supposed to comfort her? To hold her? But it wasn't his place to do that, was it? He wasn't really close to her, was he?

Well....he wasn't anymore...at least he had wanted to cut the bond they had after what happened fourteen years ago...but as she wrapped her arms around him he realised that he didn't succeed in any way. His heart and soul still ached to hold her close, to give up everything to make her happy, to make her care for him, to make her love him.

And while all those feelings washed through him his mind was screaming at him to run away. That he'd only hurt himself again in the end. That this woman was the root of all his pain and that he should avoid her.

But he just couldn't. As much as he loathed her for what she had done to him he couldn't bring himself to leave her alone right now. Not while she was clinging to his hakama like this; so uncharacteristically vulnerable...so desperate.

He was gratefull that his mind was the one that still had the controll over his facial expression though; or she would have seen the discomfort and ambivalence in them.

"You know what hurts the most?"

A tense silence wrapped itself around them and he felt his muscles straining unconsciously as if to prepare for a coming blow.

She lifted her face from his chest and looked deep into his eyes. Her golden orbs were shining with extreme sadness but there was something different in her eyes now too...something he couldn't quite place in the moment.

She opened her mouth to speak and her soft whisper teared through the silence.

"That I know that I hurt you and that I will have to hurt you again now."

As if on instinct his face turned hard and he refused to show any emotion.

Yoruichi smiled lightly at this; that little something in her eyes growing stronger.

"Maybe we should go somewhere else...so that we can talk."

She didn't wait for him to answer and started walking slowly. He didn't really know how to behave in that moment; should he follow her; should he just leave and hope that she'll stop bothering him? But in the moment he thought about it he already knew that he could never walk away. And as if pulled by an invisible rope his body started moving.

They walked slowly next to each other, silent at first, because they were both lost in their own thoughts. Yoruichi wondered how she was going to start and finally she sucked in a deep breath. "You surely remember the last time I came back....fourteen years ago." She saw a faint flicker of resolve in his eyes.

Of course he'd remember. She knew exactly what she did to him and it pained her to think about it.

He had sworn to himself to never think about it again; to never think about her again after she left for the second time. But now, while he was walking next to her, feeling the warmth of her body seeping trough his skin he couldn't keep the memories away any longer.

* * *

_She had stayed exactly one week. One week that had changed his whole life. Even though he didn't realize to what extent just now._

**1. Day:**

She had returned today. He was sitting in one of his vast gardens and tried to calm his turbulent heart. After all these years she just had to return. What bugged him the most was that he didn't understand why he was actually thinking about it. It's not like he cared for her or anything... She left when he was young...she may have been his sensei back then, but otherwise she had just bothered him anyway. He shouldn't waste his time thinking about her; she had disgraced her family; she had betrayed her position and chosen to run away with _him. _

He gritted his teeth. It was frustrating how that woman always found a way to get to him...even when she didn't even try to; even when she wasn't in his presence at all.

He sighed and somehow couldn't shake the feeling that something will happen soon. And to his great annoyance he just couldn't decide if he liked that feeling or if he should loathe it.

**2. Day:**

He had nearly gasped in surprise when he saw her sitting there, just a few feet away from him. He had wanted to visit his grandfather, because he had requested him to...

That old, plotting-like-an-old-woman man. He nearly laughed out loud. That was just ridiculous.

And as if sensing his distress Yoruichi turned around and smiled like they were old friends who got seperated for a long time...well, they hadn't seen each other for many years, but they certainly were nothing akin to friends. He thought about turning around and leaving her alone, but before the order to move could even register in his muscles, his grandfather stopped him.

"Byakuya. I'm pleased you could make it here. Look who came over to visit us, today." Byakuya stared at his grandfather incredulously. Well two can play the same game.

"I am sorry, grandfather. But I can't stay I just came over to tell you that I have to get to work soon if it's nothing all too important."

His voice grew cold with the last four words and Yoruichi knew exactly that he meant her when he said that.

Yoruichi nearly smiled but stopped herself. _You're not gonna get away from me like this, Little Byakuya._

"That's a pity. I thought we could talk a little, it has been such a long time since we last saw each other. And here I was, happy to catch up on how my friend's life is going, but..." She added a self-pitying sigh for effects and bowed her head a little to hide her face. To hide the wide grin that spread across her face in fact but they didn't have to know that.

She had to bite her lips to prevent herself from laughing when she heard Ginrei's serious voice as he began to chastise his grandson.

"Byakuya!" Yoruichi couldn't resist to look up and she nearly died when she saw the stern look Ginrei send Byakuya.

"Where are your manners. You shouldn't talk to our guest like that. You're disappointing me."

The frown that had formed on Byakuya's forehead as soon as he had seen Yoruichi, deepened even more and Yoruichi found it fascinating that that was even possible.

Ginrei looked at Byakuya expectantly and the young man had no choice but to comply with his grandfather's wishes and sat down next to him.

He hated being treated like a child; he was a grown-up man after all.

They talked for a little while; at least Ginrei and Yoruichi were, Byakuya was sipping the tea a servant had brought him as soon as he had sat down, and didn't even try to look interested.

But even though Byakuya pretended not to listen he actually listened quite intently on what Yoruichi said. And he realized with a start that he was oddly intrigued with everything she said; he caught himself more than once analyzing every single word; the way she said it, which tone she used, if she smiled or didn't...

Soon he was watching her every movement. As much as he hated to admit it she was the most graceful woman he had ever seen. They weren't exactly lady-like, no, they were actually the opposite. They were strong and swift but the way her hands danced through the air emanated such feline grace that he had to restrain himself not to try to catch it midair.

He watched the way her dark, smooth skin stretched when she made a gesture, the way her purple hair framed her face, the way her mocha cheeks moved up when she smiled, the way her golden eyes softened when she laughed and clouded when she remembered, the way her lips, so full and luscious moved when...

"Ah...I have to leave you two alone now. I forgot that I have important business to attend to."

Byakuya had nearly dropped his cup in surprise as his grandfather stood up and ripped him out of his thoughts. He cursed himself for losing control and behaving so stupid.

"That's very unfortunate. I would have liked to talk to you a little longer."

"Don't mind my being absent, Yoruichi-san. My grandson is still here to keep you company after all."

Byakuya's jaw would have hit the floor hadn't his dignity prevented it. "Grandfather..."

"I really have to go now, Byakuya. Please take care of our guest for me." With a fluttering of robes he left him alone with that demon cat.

Sighing he turned around again and took another sip out of his tea cup to bridge the awkward silence that had settled around them.

"So are we going to pretend I never left or are we going to talk about it?" He was astonished by her bluntness but then again he probably shouldn't be; Yoruichi had always been the one that stated her oppinion openly. So that hadn't changed in the years she has been away, he made a mental note of that.

"There is nothing we need to talk about." He stated calmly, trying all the while to keep his expression as impassive as ever.

She raised one of her perfect eyebrows and gave him a wicked smile. "No?"

Her tone was challenging and since he would never back down exspecially if it's her challenging, he looked deep into her eyes.

"No there isn't." His voice was serious and determination clung to its notes.

She laughed softly and a strange glimmer entered her eyes. "You're as stubborn as ever. You should at least try to be friendly, it's your duty to..."

"Duty?"

Yoruichi stared at him wide eyed. His voice had turned cold, colder than usual, and bitterness dripped off of his words. Cold shock ran through her and the words were stuck in her throat. She hadn't expected him to react like that. Sure...she had excepted him to be mad at her or to even hate her with every fiber of his being but this...

"What do you know about Duty? It's just a word for you isn't it?" His face twitched for a second but he still refused to show how hurt he truly was.

"Byakuya..." His name coming from her mouth disturbed him, even though it was just a whisper.

"You refused to accept your place, you denied your name and chose to run away from your duties. You left. You left the Gotei. You left Soul Society. You left...." _Me._

Even though he didn't say that, it was like the word was spoken out loud. His voice ripped trough the silence, that followed, in a whisper. "See..there is nothing we need to talk about." Yoruichi could hear the sadness making its way to the surface.

She instantly wanted to comfort him, to take away all the sadness and agony she had brought him. She hated to see him down like this and she was astonished that it bothered her that much.

"I'm...sorry, Byakuya."

He gasped in surprise and looked away; a miniscule blush forming on his cheeks. Yoruichi reached across the table and touched his hand for the shortest of seconds. But it still felt like an electric current and Byakuya jumped to his feet. "I have to go now." Yoruichi sighed. He had just shown her his vulnerable side but now his calm and impassive mask was back in its place and they might as well have just discussed the weather.

"You will find the way out yourself?"

"Don't worry about me. I found my way in and out more than once."

He nodded slowly and headed for the door. With his hand on the door frame he hesitated for a second and looked over his shoulder. "I...Maybe I could consider forgiving you."

**3. Day:**

The third day had been one of the longest days in his whole life. He just couldn't forget the conversation they had yesterday. He hadn't slept at all this night. It didn't matter what he did his thoughts would always return to the dark skinned lady.

He had had a meeting with his elders around noon and didn't listen to a thing they said. And of course they had noticed that the 28th Head of the Kuchiki clan was absent with his thougts. All the elders looked at each other confused, some shook their heads and frowned, some smiled slightly as Byakuya's eyes strayed to the window once again. Nobody really knew what was going on except for one man: Ginrei Kuchiki. His face had adopted a small, knowing smile and he was clearly enjoying himself as he leaned back in his chair. Which pissed Byakuya off to no end...

And now he was walking towards his office to work, or at least to try to. But he stopped short when a lighthearted laugh resounded in the air. He immediately recognized it and turned around quickly expecting the mischievous lady to be standing right behind him, but she was nowhere to be seen. Confused his eyes darted across the empty street. His head whipped to the right when he heard the sound once again and he spotted her standing a few meters away. But she was too preoccupied to notice him. She was currently talking to Ukitake, who was...

And then all of a sudden she hugged him. Byakuya couldn't believe his eyes, he was shocked to say the least. She took a few steps back and laughed again. "You're the best, Ukitake."

Byakuya could only focus on her hand lying on the white haired man's shoulder and a strange feeling crawled up his bones and fogged his brain. He could barely keep down the urge to go to the fragile captain and rip that smile right out of his face.

Fighting against himself he raced away from the scene, for one thing because he didn't want to be caught spying and because his own feelings confused him.

As soon as he finally arrived at his mansion he made sure to not meet anyone on his way to his bedroom and shut the door tightly behind him once he was there.

What had just happened? He had never experienced anything like this before. He was almost ashamed of himself; Ukitake was a gentle man who didn't deserve to have such violent thoughts directed at him. Byakuya had always respected the older man. Why did he lose control over his feelings so much lately?

This is all that woman's fault, he had known that nothing good would come out of her return.

And suddenly it hit him like a wrecking ball. No...there could be no way that...yes there was. He was...jealous.

He, the 28th Head of the Kuchiki clan, one of the four most noble families in whole Soul Society, captain of the 6th division and exceptional fighter, was jealous. And strange enough he was amazed by that. He had always had what others wanted, growing up as the sole heir of a noble family left him no wishes unfullfilled. He was rich and powerfull. Not once had he stopped to think about desiring what was somebody else's. And now; after so many years, for the first time in his life he tasted what it felt like to do. The resentment for the taicho of his sister that gripped his soul was so foreign to him that he could barely keep himself in his room and he grew furious.

Why did he let that woman have such effects on him? Why did she have such a great hold on his feelings? When did he let his guard down like this and made himself so vulnerable in front of her?

_I need to calm down. _The questions that whirled through his mind made his head ache.

He nearly ripped his robes in his anger as he tried to undress. Finally taking it of completely he threw it into a corner of his room.

"This is ridiculous!" Fuming with anger he went to his bathroom to take a cold shower in order to calm himself and to get those irreasonable thoughts out of his head.

* * *

Alright :D So for everyone that didn't get it: Yoruichi returned once before this story takes place (fourteen years ago) and this are the memories Byakuya has of this time. The next chapter will deal with the last four days...and then Yoruichi will reveal her version of it and what she did what was so horrible :XD

Reviews are appreciated as always :D


	5. Fourteen years ago Part 2

Alright here is the newest chapter :D Next up will be Yoruichi's version...those chapters will get really long so bear with me if it might take a little longer to update :D Anyway....please enjoy^^

* * *

**4. Day:**

"Here are the results of the health check-ups of the entire squad, taicho."

Byakuya just took the papers and put them aside all the while not looking up and continuing writing on the paper he was working on. The young woman, one of the new recruits, stood infront of his desk awkwardly. She squirmed a little and her eyes flew from one side of the room to the other.

After a few more minutes of uncomfortable silence Byakuya sighed and looked up. "Is there anything else?" The freshman nearly jumped at the sound of his voice and even though she was new she knew that he was stressed and annoyed by her presence. "I...I...No...I..." Because of her nervousness she stumbled over her own words trying to get them out of her mouth.

Byakuya's eyes narrowed and his voice adopted an ice cold tone. "Then you are dismissed."

Eyes widened and heart rate probably somewhere near 250 the shinigami turned around and ran for the door. She reached for the doorknob but before she could even touch it her foot caught in the material of her hakama and she fell forward. A loud bang resounded trough the office when her head hit the solid door. Holding her head she quickly got up, ripped the door open and ran outside. Renji Abarai who was standing behind said door with his hands raised as if to knock turned around and stared after her, a look of confusion dominated his face.

Slowly and a little hesitant he turned around and walked into his taicho's office. Shaking his head he walked towards his taicho who was currently holding his head in his hand while massaging his temples. "Ukitake-taicho requested me to tell you that he needs to talk to you about the last Hollow-attack." The muscles in the nobleman's arm tensed suddenly and Renji wondered why his message would induce such a reaction.

But before his lieutenant got the chance to ask Byakuya stood up stifly and left Renji standing in his office. Open mouthed he stood alone in the room and didn't move an inch. "What is going on with everyone?"

* * *

Angrily Byakuya stormed through the streets towards the 13th division. After a few metres he stopped and leaned against a wall. He tried to breathe slowly to calm his heart and sort the violent thoughts that wreaked havoc in his head.

"Are you alright Kuchiki-taicho?"

His heart nearly stopped beating when he heard the voice of the man he wanted to see the least now next to him. But instead of flinching his pride stopped his muscles from moving an inch and he opened his eyes calmly. Looking in the eyes of the gentle man and seeing the genuine worry in them made Byakuya actually feel a little guilty. "It's nothing. I'm just having a headache."

The look in Ukitake's face didn't change and a frown started to form. "Maybe you should go see Unohana-taicho." Byakuya resisted the urge to roll his eyes at that. It was just a headache for heaven's sake. He decided to change the subject so that Ukitake could stop bothering him with such petty things. "So what was that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Oh yes. The reports that were given to me regarding the Hollow-attack 5 days ago..." His eyes had strayed from Byakuya's face to look over his shoulder while he was talking and his voice decreased in volume with every word he said; his expression simultaneously changing from one used in a civil conversation to one appropriate for the message of a close friend dying. Stunned by that metamorphosis Byakuya whipped around just in time to see Yoruichi race through the streets accompanied by Kisuke. Confused as to why that picture would shock Ukitake like that he opened his mouth to ask what the matter was when Yoruichi looked over her shoulder.

...

His skin prickled and his blood froze in his veins as if not daring to move any further. His mind had gone blank. He had never been that shocked in all his life. Yoruichi...

That _look_....That look of soul-shattering fear in her face...something happened...something terrifying...something....something...

His muscles kicked into action before he could even think about it; driven by the sudden anxiety he felt. Forgetting Ukitake who was still standing beside him, he chased after her. She was nowhere to be seen and as the seconds ticked by he got faster and faster. Racing into streets, through dark alleys, looking into buildings. Desperation soon seemed to replace his blood as the substance that ruled his life. His mind all the while bothering him that he was being ridiculous; that this was not the way he was supposed to behave, one of his status shouldn't run through the dirty streets like that...so headless. But still he could find no rest and he continued searching for her...

**5. Day:**

He hadn't found her. And the day flew by as he tried to keep up his appearance while actually being consumed by that little nagging in his mind.

He didn't even notice the servants scamper around him hectically as he retired to bed after a hard and, to his dismay, unproductive day of work...

**6. Day:**

He woke up to a servant knocking on his door and Byakuya could feel the hesitation that he emanated leak into the room. The young man turned around in his bed and hoped that the servant would just give up and leave. But after a few seconds the knocking continued.

Groaning Byakuya sat up in his bed and stared at the door as if it was the ugliest thing he had ever layed his eyes upon.

"What?" He sounded annoyed; like the teenage boy he had once been. There was a little pause on the other side of the door before the servant finally got enough courage to speak:

"Kuchiki-sama ordered me to remind you of the feast that is taking place in the Kuchiki-mansion this evening."

Byakuya knew that he was refering to his grandfather but he didn't remember ever being told of something like that being scheduled here. "You can go." He immediately heard the footsteps walk away and while he got dressed he debated with himself what his grandfather was up to now.

* * *

When Byakuya finally arrived in the great hall of the Kuchiki mansion, a giant room which was used for many social meetings or plainly just for parties to show off, he was greated by hustling servants that nearly tripped over their own feet. But Byakuya had to admit that they were doing a great job. They had started decorating and organizing just yesterday and were, even though the way they were running from one side of the room to the other while evading a crash with other servants made them look like a big headless mess, a very efficient team. He assumed his grandfather had informed them of the feast a few days ago and were shocked that they had so little time to complete the preparations for such an important event. But that shock just seemed to make them push themselfes to their limit in order to please the prestige family they were working for.

The usually sparely decorated room looked magnificent to say the least. The white marble floor was polished till it reflected the light of the crystal chandeliers that hung high above at the cream-colored ceiling, which formed elegant twists and turns, and looked like a giant field of flawless snow. Stone pillars where lined up along the wall with giant vases filled with various bright coloured flowers on top. One wall of the room was covered with a giant mirror and gave the spectator the impression of the room reaching endlessly.

The whole room was decorated in light and decent colours emanating an elegant and welcoming atmosphere. The servants certainly knew what their masters liked and how they made sure that the glory of the room represented the name of the Kuchiki family.

Spotting his grandfather on the far end of the vast hall he made his way across the floor; servants jumped out of his way careful no to run into him.

"Grandfather." Said man turned around when his name was called and gave the servant he was currently talking to a quick "I want it light blue" before he fully faced his grandson.

"What is going on? I wasn't informed about this." The older man watched the light scowl on his grandson's face with slight amusement; he knew that he hated any form of social get-together. "I wanted to tell you yesterday, but you rushed in and out of the mansion so quickly I didn't get to talk to you." Byakuya's expression didn't change and Ginrei sighed softly. "You remember four days ago when Yoruichi-san came over to visit us? Well...we discussed that it would be nice when we could have a feast to welcome her back and I insisted that it takes place here."

He could see the shock cross the face of his grandson in a fleeting moment and turned his head to hide his smile. Even though he was old he knew exactly what his grandson was feeling right now; he had been through this mess himself. It was part of being young.

"Listen, Byakuya. I still have many things to take care of so I will have to excuse myself now. But I expect that you will take good care of our honorary guest as it is to be expected of the Head of the Kuchiki family."

The young man gave him an annoyed look. "As the Head of the family I could just stop all this and blow the whole feast off." Giving him a side glance the older man started to walk away. "Yes, you could."

* * *

"What a great day." Byakuya was standing in front of a great mirror as he straigthened his formal clothes that he was obliged to wear to such occasions; the sarcasm in his voice nearly tangible. He pulled on the heavy golden ornamental chain that was placed above the white scarf he was wearing and wished he could just go to bed and forget about the whole thing. But somebody of his status could never give into such desires so he released his breath in one final sigh and made his way over to the great hall.

On his way he could hear the buzzing of conversation coming from the guests who were already there. Said buzzing intensified as he opened the door to the room and stepped inside. The people in the room were all dressed in formal clothes clearly trying to outdo any other person and show of their nobility. He hated those people. He hated talking to them with their superficial eyes looking for some flaw in him, a crease in his clothes, a wrong pronunciation when he talked. But that's what those feasts were all about: to see and to be seen. Byakuya could certainly give anyone who asked a list of things he would rather do than watch those people boast about their heritage. He carried his name with pride which was one of the reasons why he thought such shallowness was beneath him.

The next half hour he was forced to engage in small talk with different people and felt like shooting himself whenever they made one of their bad jokes he was supposed to laugh about once again.

Suddenly the giant oak doors opened. Relief washed through his body as the one that made an especially bad joke turned around along with the other guests to look at the person who just arrived. Byakuya turned around to take a look and nearly spit out the water he was currently drinking. He had to use all his will power not to gape at the person standing there. It was none other than the honorary guest herself: Yoruichi. And she looked...gorgeous.

"My my...you look quite handsome, Byakuya-bo." Snapping out of his worries at her words he l

She wore a lavender coloured kimono with a slightly darker purple flower print along the bottom and sleeves, which complimented her skin and made her look like a goddess. The golden ornamental combs in her hair shone in the light but were outclassed by her eyes. They glittered like a foreign metal, a metal so valuable not even the Kuchiki family with all its posessions could afford it. But what caught Byakuya's attention the most was her mesmerizing smile. She floated through the room in a graceful movement and smiled at everyone. Well the whole thing was happening for her so she was probably supposed to greet everyone like this. Yet Byakuya couldn't stop the warm feeling that gripped his heart when she spotted him and her smile lightened up even more. Excusing herself from the woman that started talking to her she made her way towards him and Byakuya found himself checking for any signs of an injury. Relief flowed trough him yet again as he found none. But what had happened two days ago? She had been in panic...

"My my...you look quite handsome today, Byakuya-bo." Snapping out of his worries at her ways he looked away demonstrative. "How many times do I have to tell you that that's not my name?" She didn't answer but just laughed about his attitude. After her laughter died down a little and she still didn't say anything else he quietly added: "You look quite beautiful yourself."

As he looked at her to see her reaction he found Yoruichi staring at him with a startled expression.

"What?" Smiling softly Yoruichi looked right into his eyes. "I just never would have dreamed of hearing something like that come from your mouth." The silence that followed made the air around them feel electric and it felt like he was drawn towards her. Her eyes softened and the smile on her face slowly disappeared as her face glowed in anticipation as she stepped closer towards him. Giving him a heartbreaking look from underneath her eyelashes which made his heart jump she ....

"Good evening, you two!"

Both nobles nearly jumped as the sound of another nobleman's voice ripped them out of their little moment. Noticing their discomfort and proximity the nobleman smirked slightly. "Oh...maybe I should come back later. Seeing as you are busy right now." The slimy grin on his face made Yoruichi want to punch him and Byakuya would surely have joined her. "No it's alright. Is there something you need?" Giving him one of her sweetest smiles she stepped away from Byakuya and he immediately missed her presence. Engaging into a quiet conversation Yoruichi led the man away from Byakuya, smiling every now and then, leaving him standing there alone.

* * *

Byakuya spend the rest of the evening watching Yoruichi out of the corner of his eyes, watching her converse with nearly all the people present smiling so heavenly he wished he could catch her smile and keep it all to himself.

After seemingly countless hours of forced socializing and yet another single and exceptionally ugly noblewoman that tried to impress him he decided he needed some fresh air. He made sure to avoid all the guest while he made his way to the door. The servants who where positioned next to it quickly opened the door for him when he approached, careful not to meet his eyes; not that he had looked at them anyway.

When the doors closed he increased his speed and walked through the empty hallways. Everything was neat and in it's place, the servants had left nothing to chance. He looked around to make sure nobody had followed him so he was left in peace before he reached for the doorknob. He pulled the door open just enough to squeeze through trying to avoid making more noise than was necessary. As he closed the door behind him and the fresh night air washed through his hair caressing his face softly his muscles finally relaxed.

"Sneaking out of your own house, huh?"

He whipped around to see Yoruichi casually leaning against a tree. "I don't think that's any of your business."

"Oh, come on, Byakuya. Why so hostile all of a sudden?" Instead of answering he started for the gardens. It was an old habit; everytime when he needed to think about things or when he just wanted to relax and forget about all the weight on his shoulders for a few moments he went to the vast gardens of the Kuchiki mansion. Everyone who visited the gardens once had to admit that they were beautiful. In summer the most breathtaking flowers bloomed in every colour, releasing the most alluring perfume in the air around them. Every blossom was groomed perfectly by the Kuchikis' various gardeners; creating order from chaos.

But right now Byakuya had no sense for its beauty. He was too distracted by the person that was following him against his wishes.

After several moments of walking he felt her hand on his shoulder and she pulled him around to face her. Leaving her hand on his shoulder she gave him a worried look. And he was reminded of the day he caught her with Ukitake. He pushed her hand away and turned around again. "Seriously, Byakuya. What's your problem?"

"Why don't you ask Ukitake. You two seem to get along well enough." His eyes flashed with fury but turned back to their usual indifference quickly as he realized his mistake. But that was not enough to fool Yoruichi. She had seen his slip and he instantly knew she was going to take advantage of it.

Yoruichi gasped in shock and started laughing loudly. "I can't believe it!" She danced around him tauntingly and stopped in front of him to look at his face. "Are you jealous?" And even though he tried his best to hide the truth she saw the soft flicker that crossed his face briefly. "He's just a friend you know. He helped me with...something." Byakuya wanted to ask what that something was but the look in her eyes told him that it was not the time to ask this. Suddenly her gentle look turned into a mischievous one. He quickly jumped away but it was too late. The white scarf he had previously been wearing was clutched safely in her hand. Giving her a weary look he sighed purposely exaggerated. "Aren't you too old for this." Chuckling she looked over her shoulder: "You're never too old for some fun." She directed her eyes to the main gate of the mansion trying to think of a place she could run to.

"You sure?" Her body tensed as she felt his warm breath against her ear. He was standing right behind her his front pressed to her backside. Feeling his body heat envelop her body she felt the urge to lean into him further but she soon snapped out of it as his right hand reached up to take back what she took from him. No way she was going to surrender her prize to him like this. With a burst of her reiatsu she vanished and reappeared at the iron gate. "You have to come up with something better than those petty tricks of yours." With a last challenging smile she ran away. And as she raced through the streets she may not see him but she could clearly feel his pursuit.

Smirking she turned left; she knew exactly where she wanted to go now and he would follow her.

Ripping through the silent night she raced towards her destination and after a few more metres she could see the black roof appear in between the other dark houses.

* * *

Byakuya stopped short when he recognized the building Yoruichi had run into a few seconds ago. It was one of the rare estates that could keep up with the glamour of the Kuchiki mansion. Even though the giant walls seemed grey now he knew that they were painted in a vivid pearly white.

He walked up to the front of the building and stopped at the open door. No sound came from the inside, the whole place seemed empty. The Shihoin mansion lay deserted in front of him.

Yoruichi's laughter suddenly echoed trough the halls of the mansion and the light was turned on. He let his eyes wander through the entrance hall and found her standing in the middle of it, his scarf elegantly slung around her neck. "This is my home...you look like I just broke into a stranger's house and used his teethbrush or something." Byakuya frowned and slowly walked into the room pulling the door shut behind him.

Smiling she vanished in the room to her right. "Would you like something to drink?" As he walked into the living room she was nowhere to be seen so he just sat down on the couch and waited for her to come back. The furniture was graceful and glamorous yet had an air of simplicity around them. _How fitting,_ he thought as Yoruichi came back with a glass of water for him and a glass of milk for her. He almost smiled at this. When they were younger she used to ask him what he wanted to drink and he'd always give her the same answer. Seems like she remembered now.

Releasing a satisfied breath she let herself fall onto the couch right beside him and took a sip of her milk. Byakuya looked at her expectantly while she enjoyed the flavor of her milk with her eyes closed.

Noticing his stare she set down her glass on the table in front of her. "What?"

"You think I didn't notice?" Trying to look innocent she threw him a questioning glance. "Why did you lead me here?" Smiling at his bluntness she didn't answer and took the golden combs out of her hair shaking her it seemingly glad to finally get rid of them. "Maybe I just wanted to talk a little." Byakuya searched her face for any signs of her real intentions but Yoruichi had perfected her skills of hiding her real emotions as the leader of the Onmitsukido many years ago and was even better than Byakuya himself at it. "Alright." His face took on an arrogant look, he hated being played with. "Let's _talk_."

"Two days ago you where running through the streets..." "Now that's nothing unusual...isn't it?" She chuckled but stopped when she saw Byakuya's serious face. "...and you were scared."

"...."

"...you must have been mistaken."

"I wasn't." Yoruichi avoided his eyes and he knew something was wrong. "You were in panic."

She took in a few deep breaths and her soft voice left him wondering. "Could we talk about something else?" She raised her eyes to look into his.

"Like what?" "Like...your shunpo is still leaving much to be desired." He rolled his eyes. "Very funny." She stifled her laughter. "Oh it's anything but funny, Byakuya-bo." His frown deepened and Yoruichi could tell that it took all his will power not to lose control over his temper. "That's not my name." The emphasis on each word was all Yoruichi needed to know that he was seriously pissed. "But I love that name. Where is the hot headed teenager I once knew?"

"I'm not a child anymore."

"I noticed."

Byakuya turned his head towards her voice. Yoruichi's face was just inches away from his now, her eyes glowing with something he couldn't quite decipher....was it....desire? Before he could react her lips smashed into his. He dropped the glass of water he was holding as Yoruichi's lips moved against his. The soft texture of them felt like fresh petals as they caressed his and made his senses tingle while he desperately tried to regain control. But when her hands gripped a handful of his hair to play with and she pulled her body onto his he couldn't take it anymore. Wrapping his arms around her lower back he pressed his body against hers, enhancing both of their breathing. And as he started moving his lips with hers, moving in delicious sinc, he felt himself get lost in her scent, her taste and how good it felt when she moved against him. His resistance crumbled thoroughly when her hands began to wander and he threw his head back. Sinking into her embrace he knew he would never be able to fight her; not this night.

**7. Day:**

Byakuya woke up to bright sun rays hitting his face. Stretching his sore muscles he turned around in the bed. And his arm hit the empty matress. With a start he opened his eyes and....saw nothing. His heart dropped. He tried to brace himself for the pain that would soon come. She was gone. And even though there might be the possibility of her just getting a glass of milk or something like that he knew she was gone. And that she wasn't coming back. He cursed himself for his foolishness. He should have known...

Against all his measures the pain hit him full force and he swore to himself that he would never let her use him like this ever again...

* * *

_Back to the present:_

Byakuya shook his head to keep the memories of that morning away. It was still to painful to bear and he had done anything in the last fourteen years to forget what happened between them.

Of course Yoruichi noticed and she wanted to squeeze his hand to tell him that she was sorry but at the same time she knew she would just make it worse when he wasn't the one doing the first step.

They reached the gardens of the Kuchiki manor which hadn't lost anything of their grace in the years she had been away. Yet she noticed that the sakura trees had grown even more vibrant and she gladly took in their scent as they walked past them.

They stopped at the fountain which was located in the centre of the garden and sat down at a bench nearby. She waited for Byakuya to adapt to the situation and sort his thoughts while she watched the pink petals of the trees float silently over the clear water.

"It's time I tell you why I really left." The wind stopped blowing and it felt like the whole Sereitei was holding its breath.

* * *

Thank you so much for reading my newest chapter *hugs everyone* I hope you enjoyed it....please leave a review :D


	6. Yoruichi's tale

Hey guys :D Ok...so here's the newest chapter and part one of Yoruichi's revelations :D Please leave a review I had a lot of work with this :D

* * *

"It's time I tell you why I really left."

His heart thudded painfully. He knew the reason why she left; she didn't have to tell him.

Yoruichi knew exactly what he was thinking; she saw it flicker through his eyes, she saw the twitch of his mouth and she could feel the steely walls he had constructed around his heart to protect it from any sort of wounds. Cause it knew how it felt to be hurt, to be left, to long for something unreachable; she had made sure to carve the memory of these sensations deep into it's tissues so that it's life mission would become to never let anything like this happen ever again; at all costs.

She tried to make her voice as gentle as she could, to make him see how sorry she was and that she could understand him, his reasons, his feelings... A part of her wanted to run now. To turn around and never come back. She knew she was going to hurt him with what she would tell him and she loathed herself for it. She wanted nothing more but to vanish and let his heart heal in peace so that he may have even the slightest chance of it being able to let somebody in again. But the other part of her was stronger. The one that told her that he deserved to know the truth, she owed him that...and not only him.

"Please. Listen to what I have to say. I promise I will leave immediately when you want me to go afterwards."

_What you will..._

He didn't say anything for a long time. The only sound heard was the steady flow of the fountain, which seemed out of place with it's soothing effect. And Yoruichi found herself wondering how the world couldn't care for what had happened and what was happening right now. Those events that changed her life forever...they just didn't have any effect on the world. And Yoruichi knew that regardless of the terror and pain in the world, nature would just move on. It would never stop moving...it would never shed a tear for the lost ones. Some may think of that a frustrating or depressing thought, but she found it oddly comforting. To know that whatever happened life would continue gave her the courage to come back in the first place; it gave her enough courage to finally lift the stone off of her heart that kept her free spirit in its grip while it hurt itself trying to break free.

"You know....when I returned fourteen years ago I really thought I was going to stay for the rest of my life. I never anticipated what...But I guess I should start in the beginning so you can see for yourself."

* * *

Fourteen years ago

:

The view was breathtaking. Her hair billowed in the wind as she and Kisuke stood on top of a hill from which you could look over whole Soul Society. The bright midday sun warmed her mocha skin and let the white walls of various buildings glow. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the various scents, feelings and sounds caress her senses. A warm feeling settled in her bones and she felt like she could rip the stars out of its heavenly foundation. She could hear Kisuke draw in a deep satisfied breath beside her and his mouth formed the words that sent her tired heart soaring.

"We're home." Such simple words didn't suffice for what she was experiencing in that moment...After all these years.

* * *

Yoruichi sighed loudly when the warm water rushed around her skin; relaxing her soar muscles from the long journey. She couldn't help but laugh again as she remembered the faces of her family, exspecially that of her mother. Her laugh turned into a gentle smile as she thought about her. Her mother's eyes had filled with tears as she had seen her beloved daughter return home. And Yoruichi had nearly broken down in tears as she saw them roll down her cheeks. Her mother was the strongest woman she had ever met. She had taught Yoruichi many things and everybody who knew them knew were Yoruichi got her attitude from. Even though she inherited her looks from her father who died on a mission many years ago. But she didn't mourn over his death; her mother had taught her to cherish the moments she had been given and not lose her head in regretting; it would just twist the way she saw her father till she could remember nothing but pain. And she would never kill her memories of her father like that.

She slowly rubbed the soap into the skin of her legs and washed the remains off. How much she had missed taking a nice bath in her private quarters. After several minutes the water started to cool down and she knew it was time to go to bed. She could barely keep her eyes open as she left the bathtub and wrapped herself in her favourite towel. "Never would have guessed I would miss this so much." When she finally put some clothes on she left the bath and entered her room. It was quite simple and very clean. Mostly because she rarely spend time in here but prefered to be out in the streets not because she would keep it organized.

As she let herself fall into the warm covers of her bed she could feel the fatigue take over and she curled herself up in a ball before the darkness washed over her, taking away all the lights left.

* * *

:

Yoruichi stretched her sleepy muscles and yawned deeply. She decided to stay in bed for a few extra minutes to think of what she wants to do today. There was so much to see, so many people to meet.

Now that she thought about it: there was one particular person she had missed the most over the years she had been away.

She laughed loudly as she remembered the hotheaded teenager that she used to train. He had always been so rash and Yoruichi had loved the way his eyes flashed with fire when she had pushed his buttons once again. Yoruichi jumped up and quickly went to dress herself; she couldn't wait to see what he had become ; she knew that he was a captain now so he had to be powerful. She would have to check that with one of their countless games of tag. Yoruichi smiled ruefully when she thought about how much fun she had had; and how much fun he had had even though he would rather slit his throat than admit that he had loved their games just as much as the _demon cat. _

Whistling joyfully she made her way over to the Kuchiki mansion and the servants she met on her way out of her home looked at her questioningly but decided to drop it; this was Yoruichi we were talking about she surely had some weird plot ready.

* * *

She was sitting at the low table with his grandfather when he came into the room and immediately froze at the door once he noticed her. She had tried to sneak into his room; well if you could coming through the front door and just walking around the house freely call sneaking. And on her way to Byakuya's private chambers while she had been hoping that he was still in bed so she could _gently_ wake him up she had met his grandfather. The old man had smiled warmly at her and immediately invited her to have some tea with her. Of course she had agreed. But before the elder man had turned around to lead the way he had whispered something in the ear of a servant and made him hurry away. Yoruichi had presumed that he had sent him to prepare the tea but now that she saw Byakuya standing here she knew exactly what Ginrei Kuchiki's orders had been.

She turned her head and looked at him fully. A smile spread across her lips. He sure had grown up to be quite the handsome man. When he was young Yoruichi had known that he would break every woman's heart with his looks one day but she hadn't expected to find him so damn attractive herself. She had thought she'd always see the braty teenager which would wipe away any attraction she might have been expected to feel. But she couldn't help but let her eyes wander over his muscular body and broad shoulders. His face was a calm mask and as their eyes locked she knew he would leave. But before Byakuya could even try to escape his grandfather prevented him:

"Byakuya. I'm pleased you could make it here. Look who came over to visit us today" Yoruichi could tell that he was ticked off by his grandfather but probably more by her presence and she wondered if he knew that the older man had set this meeting up.

"I am sorry, grandfather. But I can't stay; I just came over to tell you that I have to get to work soon if it's nothing all too important." The tone of his voice nearly made her laugh.

_You're not gonna get away from me like this, Little Byakuya._

"That's a pity. I thought we could talk a little, it has been such a long time since we last saw each other. And here I was, happy to catch up on how my friends life is going, but..." She sighed in a hopefully suffering sigh. And just as she predicted, Ginrei immediately reacted to it and began chastising his grandson.

"Byakuya!" Yoruichi knew that she had to hide the grin that spread across her lips but she just had to look. Byakuya handsome face contorted into a mask of annoyance and barely kept control.

"Where are your manners. You shouldn't talk to your guest like that. You're disappointing me."

After a few seconds of consideration Byakuya reluctantly sat down next to his grandfather; as far away from Yoruichi as he could; she noticed.

In the next minutes she and Ginrei talked about various topics; he asked what she had been doing all the time she had been away, and he informed her about the changes that went trough Soul Society. Byakuya meanwhile was still sulking and pretended not to listen, but Yoruichi knew exactly that he was watching her. She could feel his gaze bore into her skin and just when she was about to ask him what was wrong Ginrei abruptly stood up: "Ah...I have to leave you two alone now. I forgot that I have important business to attend to."

Yoruichi giggled softly when she saw Byakuya nearly drop his cup. _What have you been dreaming about now, Byakuya?_

"That's very unfortunate. I would have liked to talk to you a little longer."

"Don't mind my being absent, Yoruichi-san. My grandson is still here to keep you company after all."

_Oh I'm sure he will..._

"Grandfather..."

"I really have to go now, Byakuya. Please take care of our guest for me."

As his grandfather vanished Byakuya sighed and took a sip of his tea. She knew he didn't want to talk to her, as much as he tried to hide it he was still like an open book for her.

"So are we going to pretend I never left or are we going to talk about it?" Yoruichi watched his face closely as not to miss even the slightest twitch. She just had to see his exact reaction so she could judge where they were standing now.

"There is nothing we need to talk about." His voice was cold and his face void of any emotion. She smirked. _That's not good enough, Byakuya-bo._

"No?"

"No there isn't." Excitement ran through her veins at his rejection. _Seems like the old Byakuya is still in there. Just you wait; I'll make sure to get him back out. _

"You're as stubborn as ever. You should at least try to be friendly, it's your duty to..."

"Duty..." She forgot the words she had wanted to say in shock. His voice was so bitter and broken; her breath caught in her throat and she had to fight the air down her lungs to breathe.

Slowly her system calmed down.

"What do you know about Duty? It's just a word for you isn't it?" She saw the twitch in his expression that followed his words and tried to comprehend what it ment.

"Byakuya..." He tensed as soon as the word left her mouth and strange as it seemed that saddened her all the more. What had become of them?

"You refused to accept your place, you denied your name and chose to run away from your duties. You left. You left the Gotei. You left Soul Society. You left...." He didn't need to say the last word and in that instant Yoruichi saw right trough the mask; saw how much she had hurt him and that the wounds she had made laid deep.

"See..there is nothing we need to talk about."

She couldn't take it anymore; she had to do something and if it was just a little gesture to take away the pain she had inflicted.

"I'm...sorry, Byakuya." But the second she touched his hand with hers he jumped to his feet.

"I have to go now." A sigh escaped her. Why couldn't he just accept her help and let his pride down for just a little second?

"You will find the way out yourself?"

"Don't worry about me. I found my way in and out more than once."

She looked outside of the window and watched the flowers. But instead of leaving the room quickly as she had predicted he would, he stopped for a second. "I...Maybe I could consider forgiving you." She quickly looked at the door but he was already gone. _What's with that man? _Angry she stomped out of the house but she couldn't keep the smile from spreading across her face. There was still hope after all.

* * *

On her way home she couldn't stop thinking about his words. Deciding to clear her thoughts out first she took an extra long route to her home. The sun had begun to set and the shadows grew larger while she walked through the silent streets. But as soon as she arrived on the Shihoin grounds all of the nagging thoughts vanished when she saw Kisuke run directly towards her; his face dominated by a worried frown.

Before she could even ask what happened Kisuke raised a hand to silence her. "Somebody was in the house. In your room to be exact." Even though the fact that somebody had been in her room wasn't scary at all the way he said it left no doubt that it had been an unwanted intruder who had possibly taken something with him. Without waiting for him Yoruichi stormed to her room. She hated people touching her things and she had to make sure nothing all too important had been taken away.

While she quickly went through the content of her drawers and tried to detect what had been stolen Kisuke leaned against the doorframe and watched the whole scene.

The room looked like the place of a big fight; curtains had been ripped and even the matress of her bed had been slit open by the intruder. Yoruichi ran around the room and Kisuke followed her movements; all the while looking like a tennis match referée.

After several minutes she stopped in the middle of the room a thoughtful look on her face, her hands on her hips. Slowly she turned around to Kisuke who gave her a questioning look at her strange behaviour.

"Nothing."

She sounded like she couldn't believe what she was saying.. "Nothing? What's that supposed to mean?"

Finally after letting her gaze wander around the destroyed room once again and trying to reconstruct the room before she met Kisuke's eyes. "Nothing has been taken."

Both immediately understood that this situation had only gotten worse. Cause now new questions were rising. Like: Why would he not take anything with him? Why would he be satisfied with just destroying the room? What does he want? Now that he had taken nothing there was no way they could figure that out. Had he stolen something they could have build up theories of what he tried to achieve with it.

Even if it had been something totally worthless they could have had a hint on his personality just with looking at what it was. They could have seen the way he choses things; a little glimpse in what he was thinking...but now. So he must know about that. Kisuke started feeling anxious; that man or whatever it was could pose a dangerous threat and his voice was uncharacteristically serious as it washed over to were Yoruichi was standing.

"Ok. Let's start this logical. We have to figure out who we are dealing with." "So we ask the servants and anyone out of this household if they noticed anything strange." "Yes. What about the shinigami that patrol around here? We could ask them too. Who was in charge of this area?"

"The 13th division..."

Yoruichi yawned loudly and walked out of the room. That was typical for her: now that no immediate threat existed and the culprit wasn't here so she could kick his butt Yoruichi started loosing the interest. "I'll do it first thing tomorrow. I am too tired to deal with it today." With this said she vanished in one of the countless uninhabitated rooms of the mansion and closed the door.

* * *

**3. Day**:

She sighed loudly. She had asked all the servants and everyone she ran into if they had seen anything. But no one had noticed anything strange or out of the ordinary. So her last chance was Captain Ukitake. She arrived at his door, knocked softly and immediately let herself in. But to her dismay no one was present except for an unknown shinigami who sorted through different papers. She was relieved when he looked up though. He was not one of those nervous newcomers that nearly suffocated when they saw a taicho or someone of her status. He was a middle aged reserved man with an air of professionalism about him. "Good morning, Shihoin-sama." He bowed his head in a welcoming gesture. "Is there something I can do for you?" "Actually there is. I want to speak to Ukitake-taicho. It's very important so...do you know where he is?"

Before the man could answer she heard a gentle voice answer from the door. "He's here actually." Yoruichi turned around to see the older Captain standing near the entrance of his office smiling one of his soft smiles. "It has been a long time. I heard rumors that you returned but then again those rumors are never really reliable."

Yoruichi laughed lightly and walked up to the man. His hair was still the same white and she found herself checking for any signs of his poor health. Noticing her gaze Ukitake blushed; preventing her from questioning his condition he asked why she came here in the first place.

"I wanted to ask you if you could give me the report of the patrolling of your division in the area of my home?" Ukitake turned around to look at Yoruichi's face to try to decipher why she needed that. But her face betrayed nothing and he knew that asking would bring him nowhere. "The protocols are still in progress so I will give them to you as soon as possible." "Thank you Ukitake. I will go and...visit a few friends while I wait." The mischievous smile on Yoruichi's face gave him the feeling that she had something up her sleeve but you never know when it comes to Yoruichi.

* * *

Slowly Yoruichi strolled through the streets smiling satisfied. She had just talked a man into paying for her ice cream, made Abarai stumble over his own words and had a really interesting and informing chat with Rangiku. She felt like she had never been away.

When she rounded the corner she found Ukitake and Unohana right infront of her. The two were talking softly to each other and had gentle smiles on their faces while throwing the other various tender looks. As soon as they noticed Yoruichi they both made a few steps back and Unohana started walking into her direction. "Good day, Yoruichi-san. I am happy to see you back and I hope you feel as comfortable as ever. But as much as I'd like to stay I have to leave right away." Unohana's welcoming smile and caring eyes expressed the sincerity with which those words were spoken and Yoruichi smiled at the older woman. "Thank you, Unohana-taicho. Have a nice day."

She watched Unohana round the corner and turned around to Ukitake. As soon as their eyes met Yoruichi broke into a fit of laughter. Ukitake blushed heavily which made Yoruichi laugh even more.

"Ah....I got the reports you asked for." He quickly took a folder out of nowhere and offered it to Yoruichi. Still grinning she took it and gave him a meaningfull glance.

"Trying to distract me, huh?" She laughed again when he averted his eyes and pretended not to know what she was talking about.

She made a few steps forward and hugged Ukitake. "You're the best, Ukitake." He gave her a friendly smile and she let her hand rest on top of his shoulder.

Suddenly she looked down the street with a puzzled look on her face. _I could have sworn I just felt Byakuya-bo's reiatsu. _Shrugging the feeling off she turned back to Ukitake and squeezed his shoulder. Smiling gently she said one word before leaving a stunned and confused Ukitake behind.

"Forget-Me-Nots"

* * *

**4. Day**:

Panting heavily Kisuke leaned against a tree and closed his eyes clearly exhausted. "Let's....take....a.....break..." He sat down and tried to calm his breathing. Kisuke actually hated getting into Yoruichi's games. They were always so exhausting and he hated to sweat. He was a laid-back man and loved to relax; to just lean back and enjoy the view of a nice sunset.

"Aww...come on, Kisuke. You can't be finished yet." Yoruichi always used that whining tone to get Kisuke to do something he really didn't want to do. She sat down next to him and gave him one of her disappointed looks. But pity for her Kisuke had spent too much of his life with her to fall for her ways. Realizing that it would get her nowhere she leaned against the tree next to Kisuke and pretended to sulk just to unnerve him a bit. "You're no fun."

And while she waited for Kisuke to get better she thought about their race. Kisuke was fast she couldn't deny that but he lacked the fire and durability to keep up with her. And Yoruichi couldn't help but to think about the one who could: Byakuya.

She smiled tenderly when she thought about their games of tag. He could keep up with her easily and excitement ran through her veins when she thought about how much he must have improved since the last time they played. Yoruichi could barely keep herself down now and wanted to run over to Byakuya's place to test his skills. She loved challenges and Byakuya would definitely give her one; he had been extraordinary fast when he was young, which came partially from her training but mostly from his unbreakable will to catch her. And now that he had had years to complete his shunpo always striving to overpower her it would be all the more fun. She jumped to her feet and Kisuke stared at her incredulous. A strange light glimmered in her eyes and he prayed to Kami-sama that her plans didn't involve him somehow.

"Let's go." With this said Yoruichi ran off and Kisuke sighed again. Pulling himself to his feet he stretched his tired muscles and chased after her.

* * *

When he arrived at the gates of the Shihoin mansion Yoruichi was already there waiting for him. He could tell that she was getting impatient and everytime he reached her she walked a few meters ahead towards the mansion only to stop and wait for him again. Smiling at her antics he walked at a leisurely pace just to pay her back for the race.

She laughed joyfully "Kisuke you're impossible."

And just when he wanted to answer to that a horrifying scream came from inside the manor.

Kisuke stopped shocked, eyes widened but Yoruichi was already gone. She raced to her home and through the front door; fear making her feet light as feathers as she prayed that no one had been harmed. Instantly the thoughts about the mysterious intruder returned to her mind. Ukitake's reports had revealed nothing. Only that that man seemed to be very skilled at hiding and erasing any signs of his presence. Nobody had seen him, nobody had sensed anything strange,... nothing.

Standing in the entrance hall she whirled around to locate the source of the scream and hoped that whoever it was would scream again so she could find him. _Come on!! PLEASE!!_

She had a very bad feeling about this and she knew that something terrible had happened. Finally Kisuke appeared next to her, his face just as serious as hers and she could feel the anxiety roll off of his body in waves. He stopped breathing suddenly and she instinctively followed his example and strained her ears. And sure enough there was a small noice, barely audible. It sounded like the faint sobbing of a woman. Both of their bodys kicked into action at the same time and raced to their right into a corridor they both knew so well. Cause in that very corridor Kisuke and Tessai's old room were located. They had spent countless hours here, sometimes just chatting, sometimes getting beat by Yoruichi in just about any game they played.

A female servant stumbled out of one of the doors, which Yoruichi immediately recognized as Tessai's room, and her back hit the opposite wall of the corridor. Her legs gave out from under her and she slid down the wall into a sitting position, her face hiden behind her hands: Her bloody hands as they noticed with a start.

Yoruichi felt nauseatic at the sight. Tessai had wanted to return to his old room to get something very valuable to him that he had had to leave behind when they had left Soul Society in a rush. He hadn't been able to tell her when exactly he would come by but he had assured her that it would be within this week.

Kisuke meanwhile ripped the door to the room open his face contorted in fear for his life long friend. She hated seeing the usual carefree man like this and stepped next to him to look over his shoulder.

The room looked...like normal. Not a thing out of place and no great puddles of blood.

They both blinked surprised and instant relief washed through them. Yoruichi squeezed through the door and Kisuke who was still standing in the doorway, stunned.

When she stood in the middle of the room she turned around to give herself a quick view over the room's condition and the relief she felt instantly vanished and the vacuum it left behind nearly knocked her off of her feet. On the wall above the bed the only one that couldn't be seen when you were standing at the door was a word. Only one but it froze Yoruichi's mind as she processed what it ment and that the substance it was written with was blood. But the worst realizations was that it might be the blood of one of her best friends. Kisuke stepped up behind her and his eyes drunk in the word Yoruichi's had already seen.

There on the white wall stood in bloody letter:

_Revenge._

* * *

Motionless they stood there and asked themselves what they should do now. Yoruichi slowly walked to the window and opened it, she needed some fresh air. Resting her chin on her chest she held herself up with her hands on the windowsill. But something felt strange and she looked down on her hands.

Little droplets of blood.

She looked at the windowsill and saw that there were more of them. She searched the garden to find more. It would mean that Tessai may still be alive; alive enough to try to flee; alive enough to have a chance at escaping. Even though she had no proof that it was really Tessai's blood her heart wouldn't let her consider any other possibilities. She was sure it was his.

_There!_ On a few blades of grass fresh blood drops shone like fire in the sunlight.

And then she felt it. Very faint but it was still there. Tessai's reiatsu and from the feel of it he was being chased. Opening the window further she hurled herself out of the window. "Kisuke!" "I know." He was by her side in an instant; all his previous exhaustion forgotten as they raced after the traces of reiatsu that threatened to vanish in the soft air.

* * *

When they reached the streets of Sereitei they had to slow down a bit because the traces were disturbed by the many buildings standing so close to each other.

"No no no no no." She couldn't feel it anymore and she threw a desperate gaze to Kisuke but he was just as clueless as she was.

They raced through the streets and Yoruichi could feel the time slipping through her fingers. They had to find him, they **had **to. When they ripped through one of the main streets at an amazing speed she felt something familiar and oddly comforting behind her. She looked over her shoulder and her eyes locked for a second with the man she had wanted to visit just a few minutes ago. But now it felt like that wish had been an eternity away. She longed to have him by her side but she knew that she couldn't afford the time she needed to explain and another part of her wanted him as far away as possible. The part that didn't want him involved; that part that was afraid something might happen to him too.

And so she kept on running while leaving a piece of her heart there at this streetcorner with him.

* * *

They flew through the forest leaves and branches slapped into their faces but that didn't matter now. They were back on track and the feeling of reiatsu intensified from second to second. Yoruichi had the hunch that Tessai knew that they were following them and tried to show them the way to his location because in certain intervalls his reiatsu flared enormously.

Finally after what felt like years they saw Tessai. He was bleeding and they could tell from his stumbling footsteps while he tried to escape his follower that he was at the end of his strength. Blood flowed from a wound on his stomach through his hands that tried to keep it down.

And then Yoruichi saw the man that was responsible for all this. Well she didn't really see him cause the moment he noticed their presence he whipped around to look at them but Yoruichi could only feel his burning gaze on her skin as he was wearing a hooded robe that hid his face from view. And just when she was about to rip him into pieces and make him regret messing with her he vanished into thin air. It seemed like he was just a dream which ended suddenly. One moment he was there; the next he was gone.

She cursed the man for getting away so easily but as Tessai broke down on the forest floor she ran over to him and Kisuke, who was already lifting him up. They had to bring him to Unohana-taicho as fast as possible.

* * *

**5. Day**:

Kisuke and Yoruichi had stayed in the fourth division building for the whole night and day. Luckily Tessai's wounds hadn't been too serious. The kido master had managed to keep the injuries rather minor and Unohana could soon give them the relieving news that his life wasn't in immediate danger. Tessai was to stay there though till she could be absolutely sure that his condition wasn't going to worsen. They both reluctantly left the building to give Tessai some rest and were glad that he would make it through easily. But a bitter taste remained. The man was still out there.

* * *

**6. Day:**

Yoruichi closed her eyes and tried the best to keep her calm. Various female servants were rushing around her like headless chicken and picked at her clothes trying to fan out the robes in the best way possible. She hated that. Everytime when she had to go to special social occasions such as this; and a formal visit at the Kuchiki manor as the guest of Honor certainly counted as special occasion, she had to dress up like this and what was even worse: she had to wear make-up.

But to her intense relief the servant doing her make-up knew exactly what she liked and Yoruichi smiled at her gratefully when she tried to keep it as light as possible. This woman was an angel.

But even though she was annoyed at having to wear formal clothing, for once because it barely gave her room to move so she was forced to walk slowly and she just thought it was ridiculous and normal clothing would certainly ease the always tense atmosphere of those so-called feasts, she found herself anticipating it. Because he would be there and she had plans for him.

She still had to test his skills after all...

* * *

**7. Day**:

She opened her eyes with a start. She had heard a strange sound but the room around her was silent so she cuddled back up to the man who was holding her in his arms while he was still sleeping. Yoruichi smiled gently as she stroked his cheek and marvelled at the soft texture. He was so warm and his face looked peaceful; so different from the usual cold mask he had in place. She sighed softly and enjoyed the sensation of his muscular arms holding her against his body. It has been a long time since she had felt so protected for the last time. Resting her hand on his chest she felt his steady heartbeat against it and she wished they could always stay like this. And while she thought about the last night the smile never left her face. He sure had grown up to be a strong man. Closing her eyes she nuzzled his neck and enjoyed his warm breath on her hair.

"_Clong_"

There it was again. Realizing that the sound came from something hitting the window she carefully took Byakuya's arm and heaved it off of her. She frowned and missed his warmth immediately. When she slid the curtains to the side to take a look she jumped back and gripped her fast beating heart.

Kisuke was crouching right outside of her window and had knocked with that stupid cane. Angry she opened the window all the while carefull not to wake up Byakuya who was still sleeping oblivious to what was going on. "What?" She hissed and Kisuke knew she wanted to return to bed or rather to the man lying in it. And that was the reason why he hated to tell her what he had to.

As she saw that Kisuke avoided looking her directly in the eyes Yoruichi knew something was going on. And when he finally looked up she wished he hadn't. "We have to leave. We know who we're dealing with now...and he's dangerous."

His words struck her like million little blades and Kisuke looked away again as he saw the sadness spread through her eyes. She looked back over her shoulder to Byakuya lying on her bed. Yoruichi knew that they had to leave. The things that happened to Tessai still clung to her bones and when she lightly pushed a strand of his ink-black hair out of his face her heart told her that she could never bear seeing him get hurt or killed. And so she left yet again a piece of her heart in her bedroom as she kissed his lips softly in a final goodbye and made her way over to the window.

"uhh...Yoruichi. You should probably put some clothes on first."

* * *

~2 Months later~

They had returned to the human world. Yoruichi sat at her usual spot and sighed while she thought about her last hours in Soul Society. They had found out who was threatening them: It was a man Yoruichi had once met 120 years ago. He was a criminal and it had been her mission to kill him. It had been a long and bloody battle but in the end she had surfaced as the victor. Now the man was back and there was only one thing he wanted: _Revenge_

And he would stop at nothing to get that. Everyone she knew was in danger now and it nearly ripped her apart that she had to get away from the people she loved; _the man she loved. _

They hadn't caught him yet so they still had to keep their distance...

"Thinking about him again?"

Yoruichi turned around and ignored the grin on Kisuke's face. "I don't know who you're talking about."

He shook his head at her and sat down at the coffeetable to drink his tea.

Tessai had recovered and was as good as new. The giant man poured Kisuke and himself a cup of his special tea and they both enjoyed the silence.

..............

.............

"AAAAH!"

Kisuke dropped his cup and both men stared at the door. .... .

Nothing happened and they looked at each other puzzled. They both jumped when Yoruichi threw the door open and stumbled into the room.

The look of utter shock on her face left them both speechless and they didn't move an inch. They followed her movement, their muscles tense and ready to react as soon as the slightest sign gave them reason to. But Yoruichi just sat down next to them, took Tessai's cup of tea and sipped from it while she stared into nothingness. She had to hold the cup witht both hands to keep it steady. The men sat down slowly and the silence grew awkward.

After several silent minutes Kisuke couldn't take it anymore and reached out to touch her.

Yoruichi twitched and looked up suddenly.

She whispered a few words but it wasn't loud enough to really hear anything.

"I'm sorry. I didn't quite catch that."

A soft smile played around her lips but the bitterness in her eyes spoke of the ambivalent feelings she had at the moment she spoke those words:

"I'm pregnant."

* * *

ok....so I overjumped the part with the feast and their night together cause I didn't really think that it would be necessary...

as you noticed this is closely bonded with the previous two chapters so you might have to take another look at them :D:D


	7. Yoruichi's tale 2

I am really, really, really sorry to have kept you waiting for this long. My apologize to all the poor souls I tortured :) I have been very ill over the past month or weeks...I can't really remember xD

This is finally the end of Yoruichi's tale and I finally got the whole background story covered *yay* So I can move a little more into the ByaYoru ;) Don't worry I already got the next chapter...which is way longer btw :) That means as a gift for waiting for so long I'll update it in 5 days *cheers*

Oh one last thing: remember that this are Yoruichi's memories she is telling Byakuya.

* * *

An awkward silence settled in the room.

Kisuke stared at his best friend who had just blown his mind away with her shocking confession. After several seconds he slowly started to close his mouth and leaned backwards.

"Tessai?" Said man looked towards the unusual serious shopkeeper and raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Would you please excuse us. I think we need to talk alone."

The giant man nodded understanding Kisuke's innuendo. After the door closed behind their old friend they stayed silent for a while both lost in their own thoughts.

Yoruichi had her head in her hands staring down at the polished wood of the table, her mind completely blank. She couldn't think of anything at the moment. Her thoughts whirled in her head and kept replaying the moment she had found out about her pregnancy. Her heart still skipped a few beats every time she saw the test turn positive once again before her inner eye. And slowly the blissfull emptiness of her head was filled with the thoughts of the impending consequences.

Her stomach clenched painfully when she thought of what was inevitable.

"Are you going to keep it?" His words were soft whispers and he intentionally kept them soft because he was afraid they might hurt her. But despite that his words felt like bullets to her as they ripped their way through her body. Her eyes widened in shock and she stared at him in disbelief.

"Do you really think I could do that?" Her muted voice shook and the air around them seemed to weight too much to sit upright.

That bitter sweet smile returned and she layed one of her hands on her still flat stomach.

"I could never..._ever_ kill **_my _**child."

The image of a dark haired handsome man flashed in her mind, his eyes staring into hers as if they could look right into her soul. "_**Our **_child."

Kisuke smiled gently at her words, they were soft yet he could hear the steely determination shine through them and he knew she would do anything to protect that little thing that was now growing in her stomach. He looked into her golden eyes and a strong feeling crawled up his bones. "I will support you no matter what your decision may be. I'm your friend...I'll protect you and that child." And as he uttered that oath he knew that it was true...no matter what.

* * *

The next months were hard and they had to hide for most of the time. They couldn't afford a confrontation with their old enemy in Yoruichi's condition and she could barely remember the following events. She just remembered the endless days of waiting and how she found it unbearable to stay put and don't risk anything. And the countless times Kisuke almost had to lock her into her own room so she wouldn't sneak out at night to finish everything.

And finally...in the night of the 15th January it was time.

Yoruichi lay sweating in a hospital bed screaming in pain. Her memories of that minutes were incomplete... or could it have been hours? The pictures appeared before her eyes and were immediately forgotten. She could only focus on one thing...and that was keeping that little life she caried alive.

And suddenly all the pain evaporated and this was the moment her memories sharpened and branded into her mind in cutting clarity:

The nurse placed a small bundle in her arms and smiled at her with a soft smile unconscious of all the worries raging inside the dark skinned woman.

"It's a boy." Funny how those simple words would haunt her dreams in the years to come. But right at that moment nothing held any importance. Nothing but the little thing in her arms. She softly pulled the blanket aside and for the first time she looked at her son's face. She almost forgot to breathe. _He looks just like him. _A bright smile pulled at her lips and all the months of difficulties and hardship vanished as her little son opened his steely gray eyes for the very first time. The strong urge to protect that little life grabbed her body and she knew she could never bear to see him hurt. She had always smiled in mild amusement when her mother told her that once she had children of her own she would understand what it felt like to be a mother. That she would understand the unconditional love that would rule her life from the moment of birth. And Yoruichi was amazed at how vast the power of something so little suddenly appeared to be, how strong the hold he had on her was.

She knew it had been the right decision to grant him life despite all the doubts and fears she might have had. The eyes of the child she now held worked their magic on her and she found herself lost in their grey depths so like those of his father.

* * *

She knew this day would come. She knew that this was the right thing to do. That she had to do it to protect her son. And yet...he was only a few days old. Still so soft and vulnerable. She felt Kisuke's hand on her shoulder and she nodded. "I know."

Slowly she laid her son into the arms of a man she had never met before. Pain gripped her heart and she nearly doubled over to keep herself together. Tears welled up in her eyes and mercilessly dripped from her cheeks. She knew she had to do this to keep him safe. It would be too dangerous for him to get caught up in the crossfire. They still had to kill that man before he got the opportunity to hurt them, to hurt those dear to her. That was the only thing that could make her feet move away and her heart bitterly swore that she would destroy that thread and come back to her son. _Bring him back to were he belongs...to his father. _

She felt unjust...what gave her the right to keep him away from his father? What gave her the right to strip his father of the privilege to hold his own son in his arms? But it wasn't safe...she had to keep his existence secret as long as that man still lived. And just as she was about to close the door her small son oppened his eyes...his eyes immediately focused on hers, his gaze almost eerie steady. He didn't move and just watched as she closed the door.

And this was everything it took:

She fell to her knees. The sensation of Kisuke wrapping his arms around her form was lost to the pain she felt as her soul ripped into pieces. And Kisuke could do nothing else but stare as the strongest woman he had ever met crumbled in front of his eyes...

Her memories faded...she had forced those thoughts from her mind long ago...they were too painfull. Funny how everyone always thought she wouldn't know what pain felt like because she was too cheerfull to care. It was partially true...she was carefree and generally saw the world as something positive, she loved to laugh and have her fun. But that didn't mean that she was untouched by painfull memories. She just chose to not let them rule her life. It was part of living for her.

* * *

Back to the present:

Yoruichi stopped her tale and looked up to see Byakuya's expression, but the man had not moved; shock seemingly keeping him from controlling his facial muscles. With cheeks pale as snow he turned his head towards her and with a slight nod motioned for her to go on. But Yoruichi stayed silent.

"I'm not sure if you want to hear this. It's not really important...we just killed that man and that was it...You wouldn't be inter..." "I want to know **everything**." His voice was dead serious and his eyes stared into hers with as much determination as they could transport through the thick veil of shock that still laid upon them. She hesitated for a second but chose to comply with his wishes for once.

"It happened on a dark night two weeks ago..."

* * *

She pressed her back to the wet wall of the building she knew that man who had driven her to such lengths was in. Trust her luck for it to be raining on this night. But she wasn't going to let that stop her. She was the Goddess of Flash after all..she always got what she wanted. And she was going to take it. It was her only wish right now...it haunted her in her dreams and every waking hour. This man had to die. If he was let alive he would hurt those close to her. Just as he had hurt Tessai once. He would hurt the others too...Her dearest friends and most importantly...her son. She could barely think of him and she had blocked the memories and thoughts of his father many years ago. She couldn't risk letting that cloud her judgement so as her mentor, who had trained her to become one of the most famous Onmitsukido leader, taught her she let those thoughts flow away to be able to concentrate enough on the task ahead.

Finally she arrived at a dark window. Carefully she took a peek inside and as she saw the room behind the wet glass empty she tried opening the window. But as she had expected it was closed securely. Taking out a piece of clothing she tightly wrapped it around her fist all the while blinking the neverending rain out of her eyes. The cold wind made her shiver as the wetness of her clothes cooled her body down further. Holding her breath she smashed her clothed fist into the window.

The muffled sound of breaking glass resounded from the grey walls and Yoruichi listened intently. She had to prevent him from hearing her approach. That little moment of surprise had to be on her side or this was going to get even more difficult. As she didn't hear any sound coming from inside she slid her hands once again through the hole she just made and snapped the lock of the window open. Lifting her whole body weight onto her palms she artistically swung her legs through the now open window and set her feets carefully on the ground below.

The glass she had forcefully strewn across the ground crunched beneath her feet as she made her way over to the wodden door on the other side of the small room. As silent as she could she pushed said door open and looked into the corridor beyond. It was dark too. She had to be carefull now...Her senses were on high gear so she wouldn't miss even the slightest sound, would detect the tiniest change in her atmosphere and be warned soon enough from impending danger.

Walking around an oddly cheerfull picture of a big family she arrived at another door. She didn't want to think about what that cruel man had done to that family that lived here before he chose to make this his new residence. The door was open just enough for her to look inside. A big bed dominated the room in its center and she could see the blanket rise and wrap around the form of that man. She could barely keep herself from attacking right away.

How unjust! Such a brutal man got to sleep peacefully wrapped into a warm blanket while he stole others their sleep as they either had to relive those things they had witnessed him do or lost one of their loved ones to him. The bitterness, which seemed like an echo of the grief of all those people, that suddenly touched her tongue made her even more determined to end this tonight.

She had a small black bag secured around her tight that she had placed there before leaving her save hiding place and Kisuke behind who was still sleeping and thinking they were going to attack tomorrow. But she couldn't risk having him in danger too...This was her fight and she was going to end it alone.

Out of the depth of that bag she retrieved little needles that she knew were layered with a poison so potent it could even knock out someone like Kenpachi.

Carefully taking aim she raised the needles to her eyes...just a few more seconds...she didn't need a big fight to boost her ego..she just wanted the heart of that man to stop. The muscles in her arm tensed and with a flick of her wrist she...

...crashed into the wall behind her. Her feet lifted from the ground and her back was pressed tightly against the roughness of the wallpaper as the form of a giant man pushed her against it; one of his rough hands wrapped tightly around her wrist. The needles slipped through her fingers as she grabbed the other hand of the man which he had wound around her neck. And he was mercilessly closing his fingers to cut of her air supply. She fought against his strong grip, her fingers gripping at his trying to pry them open. A giant rumble shook the man in front of her which sounded like a raging storm and it took her a few moments to realize that he was chuckling.

Looking her right into the eyes he leaned forward with a disgusting smile on his lips. A foul stench filled her nostrils as he whispered into her ear:

"Look who we got here. You're so naive thinking you could get into my house without me noticing. Just for your information this house is surrounded by a barrier stripping those inside from their powers which include your petty flash steps btw." His smoky voice changed into a booming laugh and her stomach almost turned over when that disgusting sound reacher her.

"You're powerless now." As if to prove his point he added more pressure to his fingers cutting into the soft skin of her neck. Feeling faint from lack of oxygen she raised one of her hands over her head. No way she was going to let someone like him get the better of her. With as much force as she could muster she brought her arm down on his which resulted in him losing his grip. With the other hand she gripped the hand that had just lost its grip on her neck and held him in place. With a devilish smile and a dangerous sparkle in her eyes she looked back at him over her shoulder. "I can still use my fists." With this said she proceeded to repeatly slam her elbow into his face till he was knocked backwards and landed hard on the carpeted ground.

Finally free she dashed over his giant body but before she could get far he whirled around and gripped her foot. She hit the floor and wasting no time he started pulling her towards him, a pained grunt escaping him. Yoruichi turned around to look at her captor. Blood flowed over his face and speckled the ground with red dots. His eyes stared back at her, filled with hate and on the edge of insanity. A cold shudder ran down her spine and her lips curled in disgust. With an aimed kick to his head she yet again freed herself. Dashing down the stairs only a few feets away from her she ran into the kitchen.

Meanwhile the man upstairs held his nose in pain and staggered trying to stand up. He let out an angry scream and ran towards the stairs. Heavily leaning on the stair railing he threw his head back.

"You'll regret that. I'll make your life a living hell. How dare you attack me? I'll destroy you." His voice turned into a dark growl. "All those you love. You'll watch them die." His barking laugh filled the air and echoed from the walls of the big house. "I'll make them scream in pain and beg me for death." He listened to his surroundings waiting for her to answer or make even the slightest sound but it seemed as if she wasn't going to do him that favor.

Taking a gun out of the drawer he was standing next to he headed down the stairs.

Yoruichi was just standing a few feet away from him hiding behind a wall all the while holding her breath.

In the reflection of a glass standing nearby she could see him descend the stair with a devilish smirk on his ugly face. Her heart rate increased and her muscles started to tense. She was going to be ready for him. His feet would never touch the last step.

Suddenly the man stopped. Yoruichi frowned. What was he doing now? A loud bang resounded and hot pain ran through her shoulder.

Hitting the floor she reached for her hurting shoulder and saw blood seep through her clothes. That insane laugh that had her insides clench in hate could be heard again and she crawled over the cold kitchen tiles to get away from the wall.

All those who knew Yoruichi would have noticed that all this show of weakness was just a trick to make her enemy think she was an easy victim. But her pursuer didn't and sure enough soon that greedy man stood above her enjoying his apparent victory. He raised the gun in his hand to deal the final blow and with a last sneer he pulled...

But Yoruichi had been ready for this. With a powerfull kick she knocked his legs out from underneath him and rammed her fist into his stomach. Doubling over he quickly recovered and grabbed her but before he could even do anything he was smashed into the wall behind him.

Yoruichi stared in shock at the figure standing before her who had just knocked the giant man away from her. His back was turned to her so she couldn't see his face yet she didn't need to. She knew who this man was.

Kisuke whirled around and grabbed her by the hand. Pulling her along he started to dash across the room towards the exit.

Seeing where he was headed she pulled herself free. "Kisuke. I'm not gonna leave. I'll finish this _tonight!_"

Turning around to face her his expression was absolutely serious. "It will end tonight." His eyes told her to trust him and after a few seconds of hesitation she decided to do exactly that. She knew Kisuke would never break his promises or intentionally hurt her.

They both went for the exit again but their way was blocked. With a bloody smile and blazing eyes the man fixed his stare on them ready to attack whenever they stepped too close.

Grabbing Yoruichi's arm Kisuke immediately pushed her towards the window they where standing next to. Without the slightest moment of hesitation he jumped through the window with Yoruichi right behind him. The glass shattered and they landed gracefully on the grass underneath. "Run!" Yoruichi wondered why Kisuke sounded so frantic as he raced over the big lawn but she still complied with his wishes and dashed forward. A loud rumbling echoed in the deserted street and the sound of shattering glass soon joined. The dark night light up as orange flames erupted from the house behind them. The pressure of the explosion knocked her and Kisuke onto the ground and soon glass and dirt started raining down on them. She turned around to take a look at the house and saw it enveloped in flames totally destroyed. With a look of wonder in her eyes she looked back at her best friend. Said best friend merely smiled and slumped down onto the grass in exhaustion.

* * *

"That was it. And now I'm back. I am glad I finally get to tell you that. You have the right to know."

Byakuya stared at her. His eyes widened in shock he found himself unable to move. To say that Yoruichi's story was shocking would have him laughing at the pale and unfitting comparision.

"I hope you..." The rest of her sentence was lost as she noticed Byakuya's stare. She patiently waited for his reaction. She had waited so long to tell him and she really hoped that he would accept it...accept _him._

Byakuya meanwhile could think of nothing. It seemed like the nerves in his brain refused to transmit any information. Like a mental blockage they just couldn't get past that specific point. Oddly enough his body stayed absolutely clam as if oblivious to the newest change of events. It took him minutes to do something, to understand, to react. The realization that came next almost knocked the breath out of his lungs and the words burned their way through his throat:

"I.."

Yoruichi felt the tension lock up her muscles as if to ready her body for the coming.

"I...am...a _father."_ The wonder and amazement in his voice almost choked her. "Yes." Her gentle answer ripped down all the walls that refused to let him think. They crumpled to dust and the feeling that rushed into him send him jump to his feet.

Startled she did the same and looked at him expectantly. But his back was turned to her so she was forced to voice her question. "What are you doing?" He stopped as if her question had made him realize something. "I am going...to bring my son back home." _My son. _A strange tightening sensation gripped his chest at that, but the even stranger thing was that it not only didn't hurt at all but it felt good to him.

"You don't need to." Even though the wind picked up speed and made his robes flutter around him it seemed as if time stopped as his mind wrapped around the possibility of what Yoruichi's words might mean.

He slowly turned around to read her expression and confirm his predictions. Her eyes were focused on his and never swayed an inch; the message burning deep in them stunned him once again.

That was impossible. Something deep in his mind, a little voice, told him that this couldn't be true. But despite all the disbelief and denial of his mind he could feel his heart started to believe. As if it had always known that this day would come. As if it had been waiting for it for many years. Always standing in the background and holding itself back cause it waited for this one moment.

But that was impossible...

Seconds ticked by before he could bring himself to ask. He fought to keep his expression even and thanks to his decades of training in appearing impassive he had his expression under control once again. "Where is he now?" And even though he appeared calm he could hear a difference in his voice. A slight tint in the color of his voice. But the worst thing was: He knew that Yoruichi could hear it too.

One of her special smiles crossed her lips and as she turned around to head into the other direction she looked over her shoulder. "At home. See if you can keep up with me." And with a strain of her powerfull muscles she was gone. Byakuya didn't hesitate a second. Once he had seen her challenging smile he knew she was going to play one of her little games with him.

So he was only a few steps behind her when they raced through the Kuchiki gardens onto the streets of Sereitei.

His clothes billowed behind him and the cold wind cut sharply into his face while Yoruichi danced gracefully in front of him, carefully keeping her distance towards him. He had to shake his head at that. She had been so serious only seconds ago and now she had the nerve to once again tease him.

Byakuya knew all that. Knew that she wanted him to try to catch her, knew that she was playing, knew that she thought he would never win and knew that she only wanted to show him his own incompetence when it came to besting her. And yet...despite all this..he pushed himself harder to reach her.

They arrived at the Shihoin manor in a swirl of leaves and robes. Yoruichi stood a few yards away from him. He hadn't been able to catch her and this bugged him more than he'd like to admit.

Her free laugh filled the air as she danced up the stairs with light steps.

This was it. Only a few steps separated him and the son he had never met._ The son he had never known existed. _

He took a few deep breaths and calmed the inner turmoil that was building up inside him. His footsteps echoed through the night as his feet made contact with the white marble of the vast stairs. The grand entrance door rose above him and for the first time in his life he felt uncomfortable crossing its threshold.

Yoruichi was as so often waiting for him on the inside. Once she made eye contact with him she walked into the living room to the right of the entrance hall.

He entered slowly half expecting his son to sit there waiting for him but he was being disappointed.

The room was empty except for Yoruichi standing next to the couch he remembered from that fatefull night years ago. But she wasn't looking at him...she was watching the couch with a tender smile on her face and Byakuya realized with a start that this room was anything but empty; in fact someday in the future when asked about this moment he would probably agree that this room had held his whole word.

Unconsciously he held his breath as he walked to the woman's side who had changed his entire life with a few simple words. The woman who had broken his teenage heart once and who had came back crashing into his life and turning everything upside down, including his feelings.

Yoruichi stepped aside to give him better access to the dark piece of furniture and with one last step he could finally see...

* * *

xD Hope you enjoyed that. I cut the fight short because 1. I suck at writing action scenes and 2. I wanted to keep it T rated for just a little longer :)

See you in 5 days xD


	8. Welcome home

Ok...looks like I have to apologize...**again!**

I decided to add a little more ByaYoru so I extended my deadline...and then my father killed our internet *insert facepalm* xD *sigh* I will never promise something like this again...cause life just seems to love proving me wrong...

blackrozegirl: I hope you can forgive me xD

Now please enjoy the story.

* * *

For the first time in his life he could actually see his son.

He stood only a few inches away from him. His breath got caught in his lungs as he looked at the sleeping form of the child he had fathered. Slowly he kneeled down beside him and let his eyes wander in amazement.

That boy looked like him. It was almost like looking at a picture of his teenage self. He slowly raised his hand and carefully as if afraid to touch him he let his finger slide across the boy's pale cheek.

_He's so breakable._

His skin was smooth and silky; the skin of a child...still untouched by hard work or rough handling. His expression was one of total serenity.

_He looks like an angel sleeping so peacefully._

Byakuya let his fingers run through the raven locks of his child. It was almost unbearable for him; his heart squeezed painfully but he couldn't define the feelings he had...wonder? amazement? _fear?_ He had never felt like this before. Such a lightheaded feeling as if part of him just stood still to admire what was before him while the other part was still not convinced...was still not ready for this.

His hair was soft and the thick strands fell from Byakuya's fingers almost instantly but he was strangely afraid to grip them harder. As if one wrong movement would shatter this illusion or hurt that fragile being in front of him.

All the while Yoruichi made no sound and didn't dare to move either as she watched the scene before her unfold. Her chest almost burst when she saw the gentle look on Byakuya's face as he carressed his son's hair. She didn't doubt that he would deny that afterwards yet she knew that he would treasure that moment as much as she would.

With deliberate movements he slowly let his hand wander down the side of his son's arm till he reached his soft hand. Byakuya wrapped his hand around his son's and at the sight of his large hand enveloping the small one of his boy that strange bittersweet feeling he had had before exploded in him once again; almost on the brink of being painfull.

His hands seemed so powerfull and big in comparision to the small one he held...It made his son seem all the more vulnerable. And unnoticed by Byakuya a small certainty settled in his soul's depth that would grow with amazing speed. _He __**had **__to protect him...And he would destroy anyone who would dare to touch him._

With a newfound amazement he traced the outline of his son's fingers. He was so _complete._ The normally stoic nobleman just couldn't wrap his mind around such a vast wonder. Cause this is what his son seemed to be.

_"I created that." _

That little thought almost knocked his breath out of him. That seemed too impossible.

He reached for his son's neck and felt his pulse. A small smile spread across his lips but it didn't match the euphoria he felt as the boy's pulse thumped against his fingers... As his son's heart pumped under his protecting hand. And somehow that made everything seem all the more surreal. _He's alive. His heart is beating...He breathes._

The boy's chest heaved under Byakuya's hand as he continued to breathe regularly unconscious of his father's caresses.

The warm breath that sweeped across Byakuya's skin raised goosebumps on his arm and he didn't move for what seemed like hours to make this moment last forever. He was too captivated by his son to notice that Yoruichi had approached him carefully.

She downright hated what she had to do next but it was getting late and she wanted her son to have a chance to prepare before he meets his father.

She gently laid one hand on the kneeling man's shoulder and startled he looked up to her; dazled as if he just woke up.

The shunpo master hesitated for a second but when she started to open her mouth to say something Byakuya was already on his feet. "I should probably leave. It's getting late."

Yoruichi almost laughed when she heard that. _Who knew Byakuya became a mind reader..._

"We'll come visit you tomorrow. He wants to meet his father as soon as possible." He only nodded calmly but his inner world was in chaos at the prospect of meeting his son in a few hours...of looking him in the eyes.

With one last glance at his sleeping son Byakuya started towards the door. Yoruichi followed him and as he walked down the vast steps of the entrance staircase she leaned against the doorframe.

"He wants to live with you, you know."

Byakuya stopped dead in his tracks and he was sure this was the last straw: his heart would never start beating again. It took him a few seconds to recover his senses and as he did he slowly started walking again without turning around. But before he reached the last step he stopped again.

"I have only one question left."

Yoruichi raised and eyebrow at this and she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Go ahead."

He took a deep breath. "What's his name?"

She didn't answer for a while and he was almost tempted to turn around and look what she was waiting for but before he could her answer reached him in a whisper.

"Katsuo"

His chest area tightened and a smile played on his lips as his mind repeated his son's name.

"That's a beautiful name." And with a small burst of wind he vanished.

Yoruichi's eyes widened in surprise. She had thought that he would be either displeased because he was not given the opportunity to chose one himself or indifferent. She never would have expected him to say something like this and it felt like a little burden had been lifted from her shoulders at the fact that he liked his son's name.

She closed the door as silent as she could as not to wake her son. She was already looking forward to tomorrow.

* * *

Byakuya arrived back at home in the dead of the night. But no matter how exhausted he felt and how long he tried he just couldn't rest. His mind kept him up and he suddenly found himself standing next to his koi pound watching his priced fish glide through the clear water lazily. It was a beautiful sight. The moon reflected in the dark water and the colourful scales of his fish shone occassionally in the pale moonlight. But Byakuya had no sense for that beauty right now. Now that he was away from his son's captivating influence darker feelings started to creep up on him. The little voice in his head that he had heard when he had kneeled beside his son started to make its way back into his mind. Now that it was not overruled by the euphoria that had washed through him at that time it found nourishment in the loneliness of the night. And soon uncertainty settled around him. Was he really ready for this? Was he suited to be a father? This child had lived without him for so long...did it really need him? What could he give him that no one else could? What if Katsuo realized that too and didn't accept him in the end?

Byakuya hated those feelings. He had always been confident of his decisions he had never hesitated..uncertainty was for people of a lower status than him. And yet it felt like this was a task he could never master. Mistakes would be fatal.

Another thing was that people will surely talk. Out of the blue a boy appears that looks just like him and is announced as the lost heir of the noble Kuchiki family? An even more uncomfortable thought occured to him: what if _they _didn't accept him? What if the Kuchiki elders rejected him? The illegitimate child of the Head of the Kuchiki clan?

All this worries gathered in his chest and expanded his lungs almost forcefully. As if to free himself of the burden a deep sigh escaped him. But it was only a short relief; soon they settled on his chest once again making it heavier than it had been before.

"Looks like you finally met him."

Startled Byakuya turned around; he had thought he was alone.

He was shocked to see his grandfather stand only a few feet away from him he hadn't noticed him approach. Ginrei smiled softly at the shocked and at the same time confused look on his only grandson's face. "It's been a while I have seen you so lost in thought. And I can only think of one..two persons that could be the cause of this."

As Byakuya realized what his grandfather ment he looked at him incredulously.

"You _knew _this? Why didn't you tell me that you met him?"

Ginrei took a few more steps to stand at his grandson's side and watched the fish in the pond gather at the edge of the pool as if they were waiting to be fed.

"I didn't meet him. Yoruichi told me everything the day she came back. She was unsure of the right way to tell you and asked for my advice. I figured it would be best when she was the one that tells you."

Byakuya was surprised at the even tone in the voice of the older man. It seemed as if he accepted the situation fully without even thinking of reproaching Byakuya for fathering a child so thoughtlessly.

Averting his gaze from his grandfather he looked up into the starry sky. Silence settled between them as they both listened to the faint wind flow through the trees around them.

The young man closed his eyes and tried to calm his inner world once again. Ginrei all the while examined the man he had seen grow up closely. He had certainly come a long way. From the bad tempered boy to this collected and respected man. But over all the years he had never lost his good heart and Ginrei couldn't help but feel proud of his grandson.

He almost felt nostalgic as he noted that he had finally become a man.

_"I'm getting old."_

As yet another frown appeared on his companions forehead his eyes adopted an unknown tenderness.

"I won't lie to you." Byakuya's eyes shot open and he turned to meet his grandfather's intense look.

"It won't be easy. Raising a child is not something you can learn by reading books. It is something you learn by experience. And every mistake you make will teach you. You may have doubts that you won't be good enough. But believe me you will grow up to the title of a father pretty soon and every single one of your son's smiles will be your reward."

To say Byakuya was stunned by his grandfather's words was an understatement and a sarcastic voice in his mind asked him how he could still be surprised after all that happened over the past few hours. Those past few hours that changed his life forever.

"They'll come to visit tomorrow."

His statement seemed to hang heavy in the air around them and Ginrei didn't react at first. Then he turned around and started walking back towards the silent house. "You should rest then."

Despite his grandfather's words Byakuya stayed for a while. He listened to the older man's footsteps as he departed and soon the world around him was silent once again.

When he finally made his way back to his bedroom his mind was almost empty; tired from the day's trial.

As he reached his bed he fell asleep almost instantly.

* * *

The next day Byakuya sat at his office desk trying his best to concentrate. He had received a message from Yoruichi early in the morning that they would arrive in the evening and now every single of his thoughts seemed to be glued on exactly that time. And one of life's cruelties was that whenever you were waiting for something seconds felt like hours, minutes like days.

His grandfather's word had somehow eased his worries even though they had been simple and short. The wisdom behind them was enough to carry everything that was left unsaid.

A knock on his door sent him reeling back to earth.

"Come in." His fukutaicho opened the door without further ado and came up to his desk with a few papers in his hand. "Taicho. Unohana-taicho asked me to bring her your finished reports and..."

Byakuya's eyes widened a fraction. _The reports? _He had forgotten all about them. He inwardly cursed himself for being so distracted by everything that he even neglected his duties. With a small release of his breath he turned towards his lieutenant. "I don't have them yet."

"Good. I'll give them to her right away then so she...Wait! What?" The red haired man's jaw almost hit the floor which annoyed Byakuya even more. He didn't need to make such a fuss about it. He cleared his throat feeling a little awkward.

"I don't have them yet." Renji watched as his captain started to work again on the papers that were waiting in front of him and found himself lost for words. His taicho. His hardworking taicho who never missed a single deadline just admitted that he had not finished one of the reports that were due today. "I...I'll tell Unohana-taicho that we...are having difficulties then." "Do that." His taicho didn't look up and his voice was impassive once again. Hesitating at first Renji reached for the door but didn't leave just yet.

"Taicho..."

Byakuya looked up irritated by the fact that Renji had not left yet. The voice of his fukutaicho held a strangely solemn tone. "I could finish those reports for you if you have other matters to attend to." His anger died almost instantly as he noticed the deep consideration behind Abarai's words.

"There is no need for that. I will finish them now."

With a curt nod Renji closed the door behind him and Byakuya was left alone in his office once again.

Those reports took him hours. He spent most of the time trying to make himself concentrate which ironically resulted in him being even more distracted then he was in the beginning.

And as he finally handed the reports to one of his subordinates to bring them to the fourth division it was already late. His stomach dropped when he noticed the time and that he had to return home. They were already waiting for him...

* * *

Meanwhile at the Kuchiki mansion everything was in uproar. The message of the lost Heir arriving at home left every servant stunned and nervous at the same time. They had spent most of the morning arranging things and preparing for his arrival. The excited chatter could be heard through every corner of the vast building.

Especially the older servants seemed to be happy by the prospect of a child living in this house once again. They went out of their way to make everything as perfect as they could and watched over the preparation of the future heir's room with scrutiny. They inspected the covers, pillows, clothes and about everything else. They wanted only the softest and most valuable materials so they would be worth of a Kuchiki. The whole air in the house seemed to have changed overnight and everyone was sure that this would go down into the history of the Kuchiki as one of the happiest days they ever had. The arrival of a child excited everyone and that feeling wasn't dimmed by the fact that it was already thirteen.

As Ginrei Kuchiki made his way through the mansion to supervise the preparations he couldn't help but let the servants' enthusiasm catch him too.

When he arrived downstairs he went for the gardens to have some peace from the commotion that was taking place inside. Once outside he spotted an old woman sitting on one of the wodden steps that gave access to the backyard. She was one of the oldest servants in the House of Kuchiki and Ginrei had known her for many years. He would always remember her feisty attitude and how she never neglected to speak her mind. She must have noticed his approach cause she began speaking with her soft voice when he arrived behind her.

"Isn't it nice to see all those people so euphoric? A child is always something that sets a whole house into frenzy to celebrate the new life that begins."

She laughed roughly.

"Of course they are excited. The fresh wind that this child brings is welcomed by everyone of us. It has been too long."

Her booming laughter suddenly filled the air and Ginrei couldn't help but smile as well.

"Yeah. Hopefully that child's a lively one. I'd love to see him ruffle the elders' feathers again. It's been a long time somebody made them loosen up a little."

Now Ginrei had to laugh too.

"You forget that he is Yoruichi Shihoin's son too."

Laughter danced in the old woman's eyes as she turned her withered face towards Ginrei.

"And if he's anything like his father was back then we're in for one hell of a show."

The old man sighed deeply prompting her to laugh once again. "Don't worry, old friend. You'll live."

* * *

A few minutes later a servant arrived and informed them that Yoruichi Shihoin and her son would soon arrive. So everyone took their respective positions in the entrance hall and waited for them.

After minutes of strained waiting a small commotion could be heard outside and everyones' attention was focused on the entrance door. Voices called on the outside and finally the doors opened. The servants bowed their head respectfully and could only listen to the footsteps that crossed the vast hall. Ginrei couldn't believe his eyes. Next to Yoruichi stood his great grandson and he felt like he was suddenly back in the past. The boy was the spitting image of his father. From the pale skin and raven hair to the steely gray eyes. Only when he looked at him closely could he see the small differences in his appearences. His hair seemed to be thicker somehow and...now that Katsuo raised his eyes to look right into his he noticed another more stunning difference.

_He has his mother's smile._

Ginrei had to admit that he had had doubts. Of course he had never mistrusted Yoruichi's words. That boy was surely Byakuya's child and now that he stood before him he was all the more sure of that. But he had been worried if the boy possessed the skill and durability to pose as the Heir of the noble Kuchiki family and since Yoruichi was the princess of the Shihoin family as Heir of the Shihoin family too.

Even though he had tried to comfort his grandson the night before he may have eased his worries but he had hidden his own uncertainty.

Now that he saw the boy for the first time, saw the brightness in his eyes and the way they shone with curiosity, saw the air of sovereignty with which he carried himself and he was instantly sure that he could master it.

In hindsight how could he have doubted that boy? His parents were among the strongest shinigami and were both excellent leaders. That boy won't disappoint them...he was sure of it.

The servants raised their eyes to look at the newest addition of the Kuchiki family even though they weren't supposed to but curiosity got the better of them. And all of them were mesmerized by the similarity he had towards his father and the goodhearted smile that danced around his lips.

* * *

He arrived late at night. Standing in his vast gardens he tried to collect himself and regain some of the calmness he once had. But his body had done nothing else but remind him of what was to come without mercy.

As the wind started to get cold he just couldn't take it anymore and went inside.

He didn't see anyone at first. The light was dimmed and the house seemed to be ready to sleep but still...he could sense a certain lightheartedness. Or maybe this was just his imagination. His mind seemed to be playing tricks on him all day.

After several minutes of walking slowly through the mansion trying his best to delay the inevitable he finally arrived at the room they always used to welcome guests and sit down for a relaxing cup of tea. Mind you Byakuya was anything else but relaxed right now. He could hear the voice of his grandfather behind the door along with that of Yoruichi both muffled by the paperdoor that separated them from him.

And before he could change his mind he slid the door aside and stepped inside.

Everyone inside turned to look at him surprised by his sudden entrance. But he didn't care about them his entire attention was directed at only one of the persons inside. With a small movement of his head his son's long raven locks fell over his shoulder as he raised his eyes to look into the face of his father for the first time. Time stopped when he looked into Katsuo's grey eyes that were so much like his own. An intense feeling rushed hotly through his veins and just when his son got to his feet and stood right in front of him did he know what it was. _Pride._

A few awkward seconds passed as Byakuya inspected his son once again and just when the tension in the air was almost too heavy to take he noticed his son's amazed stare. A new realization hit him: It was not only his first time meeting his son but it was also Katsuo's first time meeting his father. And in contrary to him Katsuo had always known that he existed somewhere. He had known that his father was out there somewhere and that he may not even know who he was. He had waited for this moment his _whole _life. He had probably longed for his parents the moment he took his first breath.

_A moment that Byakuya had missed. _

That thought hurt Byakuya more than he would have thought.

He had waited for them...

His son had been alone for as long as he could think while he just continued his life oblivious to his suffering. And Byakuya hated himself for it. He hadn't been there when his son had needed someone to comfort him. Hadn't been there to wipe his tears away...and now that he though about it he may have been the source of some of them. His son had to grow up without the healing touch of his parents. He had never experienced what it felt like when his parents just wrapped their arms around him and seemed to blow away all of his worries and protect him from everything that may step in his way.

And as he saw the tears well up in his son's eyes it felt like being stabbed. The tension broke to pieces when those tears flowed down Katsuo's cheeks and when Byakuya took a step forward to reach for him the boy threw himself into his father's arms.

Instinctively the nobleman closed his arms around the sobbing frame of his son and noted once again how small he was as his hands gripped the material of his father's robes in front of his chest. And Byakuya continued to hold his son against him as his body shook with violent sobs.

After a while he started to calm down but he never loosened his grip on his father's clothes. Byakuya meanwhile rested his chin on top of his son's head and took in his scent. And right then...as his son's warmth seeped through his clothes and skin till it seemed to warm his heart himself that little tug he had felt over the last years disappeared. He didn't even notice how it slowly started to evaporate and now it was finally gone. That constant reminder that made him feel like he was missing something just left. And for the first time in fourteen years he felt complete. He closed his eyes, content.

* * *

Yoruichi walked through the empty corridors of the Kuchiki house. It was the middle of the night and when she arrived at her destination she found who he was looking for. Byakuya leaned against the doorframe to their son's bedroom and watched his son sleep peacefully. She watched him closely and a tender smile spread across her lips as she saw the gentle expression in his eyes. "A strange feeling isn't it?"

He didn't answer at first but the fact that he didn't bat an eyelash at her sudden statement told her that he had noticed her approach minutes ago.

" 'Strange' doesn't even begin to cover it."

She laughed lightly and walked past him into their son's bedroom.

"I know what you mean." And with a small chuckle she noticed how they had both unconsciously already adopted the whispery tone of parents that didn't want to wake their children. Slowly sitting down on the matress beside Katsuo she flatened the covers to look at him. As she saw his face that looked exhausted even in his sleep she put a loose strand of hair behind his ear and bend over to kiss his forehead.

Byakuya could only stare when he watched Yoruichi kiss their son. _Their son._

He somehow couldn't stop his heart from beating faster as he saw her together with Katsuo. The moonlight shined silverly and branded this picture into his mind forever.

Yoruichi ripped Byakuya out of his thoughts when she stood up and began to leave the room. His skin prickled when she walked by him maybe a little too close to be unintentional. She slowly closed the door and Byakuya took a few steps back to give her enough space.

"We should probably go to bed too." Byakuya nodded and as if her words had reminded him how exhausted he was he suddenly felt extremely sleepy.

"I'll just steal a glass of milk from the kitchen before going to bed." Wondering why she told him that he once again just nodded and turned into the other direction to walk towards his own bedroom.

"Good Night, Yoruichi."

"..."

He looked over his shoulder when she didn't answer and could only see her vanish behind a corner. He found it strange that she wouldn't wish him 'Good Night' normally she always returned something like this.

Shaking his head and sighing deeply he started walking again. He would probably never understand that woman.

* * *

With an exhausted grunt he let himself fall into the soft covers of his bed. He was almost too tired to move now let alone lift the heavy covers. But it soon got too cold so he stood up and quickly slipped in between the white sheets. Seconds before sleep claimed him he heard a small noise inside his bedroom and lifted his head to look around. He couldn't see much in the darkness of his bedroom. He had drawn the curtains before going to bed so no light shone inside. When he didn't spot anything out of the ordinary he layed back down, closed his eyes and rolled over onto his other side.

And then he heard it again, but this time it was right in front of him. With a start he opened his eyes and he nearly had a heart attack. Lying next to him as if it was the most normal thing in the world was none other than Yoruichi Shihoin. _That_ mischievous grin adorned her lips and Byakuya could feel his teenage temper try to break through once again.

"What..do you think you're doing here?" His voice held a hostile note as he hissed at her.

Yoruichi blinked at him innocently. "I'm going to bed of course. I told you I would drink a glass of milk before coming to bed." With this said she snuggled into his blankets and closed her eyes. Byakuya looked at her incredulously. It's official now...she had lost her mind.

"You said you were **going **to bed! In your own!"

She frowned playfully. "Shhh, Byakuya, not so loud you're going to wake the baby." If he had been anything like his past self he would have thrown a pillow at her but he was too proud to do so. She laughed at the angry look on his face.

When it was certain that she wasn't going to stop laughing for a while he stood up and walked around the bed. Yoruichi watched him curiously. "What are you doing?" Before she could say anything else he pulled the blanket off of her and tried to grab her arm. But despite the speed of his actions he was not fast enough for Yoruichi and with a twist of her arm and a quick role she threw him onto the bed beside her. His breath left his lungs when his body hit the mattress. He sat back up quickly but Yoruichi wouldn't have that. So she pushed him back down and sat down on his waist effectively straddling him.

"Not so fast, Byakuya-bo." She playfully hit his arm and laughed again in her carefree manner.

"What do you want here?" He hated repeating himself and he hated Yoruichi for making him do so but what came next made his heart beat faster than it was comfortable.

Yoruichi leaned down, her hands on his hard chest. Her lips were only inches away from his. "This is our child. I am his mother and I won't leave him alone here. I am going to live wherever he lives so I'm going to sleep in the bed I am most comfortable with and whose bed would fit that description more than the bed of the father of my child?" Her eyes glittered even in the darkness of his room and he found himself caught in their hold for the umpteenth time.

With one last stroke across his clothed chest she jumped off of him and put the blanket over both of them again. She closed her eyes and didn't move or say another word.

Minutes passed and finally Byakuya laud his head back on his pillow; still feeling awkward. He didn't move much in the following hour because he didn't want to disturb the woman beside him. Sleep seemed to be far away as he watched her sleep peacefully beside him. And a small part of him loved the view. He cursed himself again for being so sentimental and just when he thought he would never sleep his eyelids started to drop slowly.

As darkness finally enveloped him he could have sworn he heard a faint: "Good Night, ...Byakuya-bo."

* * *

Ok I admit it...that first part made me wanna cry xD

Please leave a review. That's the only reward an author needs :)

Katsuo means "victorious child" btw


	9. Family trip

I still don't own Bleach xD

I finally finished *cries tears of joy...real life is...you get what I mean :) I will never give this story up though.

* * *

Byakuya opened his eyes slowly. It took a little time for him to get used to the light, that seeped through the curtains, and pushing the heavy blanket aside, he sat up carefully. He looked to the side and saw Yoruichi sleeping soundly next to him. Her purple hair spread across her or rather _his_ pillow in a beautiful mess. The white sheets were tangled between her legs. Looks like she couldn't keep still even in her sleep. Just when he was about to leave the warm bed, her sleepy voice stopped him.

"Where do you think you're going?" He looked back at her, but quickly averted his eyes as he noticed the way her unruly hair fell over her naked shoulder and how tempting she looked lying among his bedsheets. He shook his head to get rid of these thoughts, but they stayed nagging at the edges of his consciousness.

"I have to go to work."

He barely surpressed a shudder when his feet hit the cold floor, but he would never let her see it. He really didn't want to leave his warm bed...or her side...

"You shouldn't work so hard all day, it's not healthy." Determined not to let himself get stopped by her teasing words, he stood up and took fresh robes along with his captain haori to get dressed in a different room.

She smiled at this..

_"You're not going to give me a free show, huh?" _

Waiting for him to reach for the door, she made her voice sound as innocent and casual as she could.

"Shouldn't you do something with Katsuo today?"

Just as Yoruichi had intended, Byakuya stood frozen at the door.

"It's his first day here after all. Don't you want to get to know your own son?"

A pang of guilt shot through him. He knew Yoruichi was trying to make him do what she wanted, but he had to admit she had a point. And now that he thought about it, he wanted it too.

But he wouldn't give Yoruichi the satisfaction of knowing, that he was going to do what she wanted him to do. Some people would have shaken their head in wonder at this immaturity, but only those who had never met him as a teenager. So he kept on walking and closed the door behind him.

Once he arrived at work, he immediately began setting up everything so he could have the evening off to spend it with Katsuo. Gossip really was faster, when it came to passing messages, than any hellbutterfly. The whole squad had already heard of the new arrival in their captain's home. And to his amazement everyone nearly tripped over their own feet in the attempt to help him. Of course they'd know what he was going to do, when their normally hardworking captain tried to clear his schedule for the evening in a preferably inconspicious way. But they knew better than to say anything, so they just kept quiet.

He sent a messenger to his home to tell Katsuo, that he would spend the evening with him and that he should choose what he wanted them to do.

Byakuya had thought about different activities at first, but in the end he decided to give Katsuo the choice. Mostly because he didn't know what activities were good for a thirteen year old. He had to admit, that most of his choices would probably be too boring for him and he didn't want to risk any mistakes. He wanted his affection. Funny how he only started to be a father a few hours ago and yet, all of a sudden, the love of his son seemed essential to him. He knew, he would never be able to accept it if he disliked him. Maybe just to make it up to him...

Maybe...or maybe not.

* * *

Yoruichi found Katsuo in the garden. A man just left when she arrived and she immediately knew, that he was one of Byakuya's men. She shook her head lightly, but couldn't stop a grin from appearing on her lips. Of course he'd try it this way. He was way to proud to admit, that he was doing exactly what she had said. Looked like he hadn't changed after all.

She lightly touched her son's shoulder to get his attention. He jumped at the contact and Yoruichi laughed at his shocked expression. Sometimes it felt like being thrown back into the past, when she looked at him. She had loved making his father lose his temper back then. Not that she had lost that quality.

"Sooo...what did that man want from you just now?"

Katsuo sat down on the wodden steps, that lead to the garden and Yoruichi followed his example. "He said that my father would pick me up in the evening and that I should choose somewhere to go. But..."

He hesitated and Yoruichi looked up to see what was wrong. His face was troubled and he seemed to be thinking hard about something.

"But you don't know any places?"

He laughed softly and she found herself delighted by the sound of it.

"You read my mind."

She gave him a little nudge. "I could help you. We just need to decide on something you'd like to do."

"But what if he doesn't want it?"

Yoruichi smiled softly..._"always thinking of others."_

"Your father likes calm and relaxing things."

He jumped to his feet abruptly, his eyes shining in excitement. "We could just go to a nice place then and...well..do nothing. Oh..or I could bring my sketch book along."

It seemed as if new ideas flashed through his mind every second.

"I know just the perfect spot for you then." She stood up to leave, but a hand on her arm stopped her. Katsuo watched her with a confused look on his face.

"Aren't you going to tell me?"

She took Katsuo's hand and gently pushed it aside.

"I'll tell your father. It's a surprise." The annoyed expression on his face made her laugh loudly. 

_"Yep..definitely like his father."_

_

* * *

_

When Byakuya went to his office to retrieve a report he wanted to take home with him, he found a single note sticking to the back of his chair. There was only one simple sentence written on it, and yet it was enough for Byakuya. He knew, that Yoruichi had written that note, and that she found out about his plans.

He crushed the paper in his hand and left.

_- Bring him to our favourite sleeping spot - _

_

* * *

_

When Byakuya arrived at his manor to pick Katsuo up, he was already waiting for him.

They both stood in front of each other awkwardly, not really knowing what to say.

Finally Byakuya hesitantly layd his hand on his shoulder and pulled him along. They stayed silent in the beginning and just walked through the streets. People stared curiously and whispered, when they passed by. Some looked amazed at the similarity between them, some smiled at it and of course there were those, who were so shocked, that they apparently lost the ability to close their mouth.

Soon they left the streets and found themselves on unsecured paths through the landscape. Katsuo enjoyed walking beside his father and once in a while he sneaked a peek at him, as if he was afraid he'd disappear in the next second. It felt so unreal to have him at his side and to hear the rustling of his clothes, with every step he took. He had waited all his life to finally meet him and now...he stood beside him, could actually see and touch him.

Slowly he reached out his hand and brushed his fingers along the fabric of his father's robe, that covered his arm. Surprised Byakuya looked down at his son, who quickly avoided his gaze with a faint blush on his cheeks. He couldn't help a small smile from appearing on his lips.

"So...is there something you'd like to know?"

"Mom told me all about Soul Society and the Gotei before we got here."

"... ."

Byakuya kept silent trying to find another way to start a conversation, but he was beaten to it.

"But I...What about our family? She said, you'd tell me. What about my grandparents?"

A soft wind flowed through the leaves of the tress nearby.

"There are four Noble Houses in Soul Society. The Shihoin and Kuchiki family are among those four. Your mother is the 22nd Head of the Shihoin family and I am the 26th Head of the Kuchiki family which makes you...the heir of both."

Katsuo laughed at that. "Double noble? How lucky." Noticing the strange tone in his voice, Byakuya knew that he was aware of the problems it may bring, and not really knowing how to react to that, he just kept talking.

"My parents died in a batlle, when I was a teenager. Your mother's parents are still alive though."

Sensing old wounds Katsuo decided on a different question, that he was just equally curious about, even though he couldn't keep the sting away, that was now present in his heart, at the thought, that he will never meet that part of the family. He would ask him about them at a more proper time.

They walked a few more steps, before his biggest question just broke out of him.

"So..." A grin appeared on his face. "How did you meet Okaa-san?"

Byakuya fought the blush from reddening his cheeks, as he remembered their past encounters.

"Since we're both from noble families we knew each other from a very young age.

My grandfather had invited her over..."

Katsuo enjoyed listening to his father's smooth voice, as he lost himself in his memories.

_..._

_Their first encounter had been...painfull._

_He had been practicing his caligraphy skills, when she came into his room. Or rather stormed into his room. She ripped the door open and jumped inside. Shocked he turned around and spilled ink all over his work, which pissed him of further. _

_A few awkward seconds passed, as they mustered each other. Then Byakuya couldn't take it anymore: _

_"Who the hell are you?" _

_Her answer didn't consist of words, she just laughed at his anger. Byakuya found himself hating that obnoxious sound, that she made. His eyes narrowed as he watched her laugh at his expense. How dare that woman..he was the next Head of the Kuchiki family. She should show some respect. And before he could tell her all of this, she was right in front of him. _

_Her face was merely inches away from his and he staggered backwards; and as if fate wanted to take away every last bit of dignity he had, he tripped over a book with caligraphy symbols and crashed into the paper door. _

_He was still amazed at the fact, that she survived the following minutes without breathing. She had to kneel down on the floor as she doubled over holding her stomach, while her eyes got teary from laughing so hard. His face went red and he jumped to his feet immediately._

_"Who do you think you are, ridiculing me like that! Don't you know who I am? I..."_

_Her face turned serious at once and he stopped with a start, watching her carefully. _

_"Yes I should probably introduce myself." _

_His jaw almost hit the floor and Yoruichi closed her eyes slowly, making it look like she was just collecting her thoughts, while she had to refrain from laughing at his expression. _

_She opened her eyes again suddenly, and stared into his grey ones with an intense look, her voice sounded almost dangerous as she uttered the following words._

_"I am your new shunpo teacher."_

_..._

_..._

_..._

_Byakuya just turned around and walked away. _

_But before he could even make it out of the door, she was right behind him..tickling him._

_"You know...a smile suits you way better. Why don't you smile for me?" _

_He struggled with her, trying to get her away from him, but she was surprisingly quick and he couldn't get a hold on her hands. _

_"Get..away...from..ME!" _

_The last word turned into a squeal and his face went hot again. Her amusement didn't make it better and he finally snapped. With a strong push he managed to free himself, and just when he turned around to make her regret her actions, a sudden wind ruffled his hair and she stood a few feet down the corridor with his hair tie in her hand. This was actually the first time she stole it from him and in the comming years he had to constantly buy himself new ones, because she never gave them back. She must have had some hidden stash with all his hair ties somewhere. _

_"Give it back!" She looked at him surprised and actually made a face, as if she was really considering giving it back, before..._

_"Nah." And she vanished._

_With a burst of energy he followed her. They raced through the garden, changing the route every few seconds and she played with him; dancing so close on occassions that he thought he had her, and in the next moment standing so far away, he was left stunned. When his anger reached almost unbearable heights, she changed her route again and they would have continued this game for hours..._

_Pity he didn't see the tree coming.._

Byakuya cleared his throat awkwardly, as his son bit his lips to avoid laughing.

"Anyway...we're there."

Katsuo looked up and had to admit, it really was a beautiful place.

They were standing on a low hill, surrounded by cherry trees. The location wasn't too far away from the Kuchiki grounds, yet no one was there and it seemed to be a pretty secluded area. Now that he thought about it, this place might actually still belong to the Kuchiki grounds, which would explain the absence of people at such a peaceful place.

The wind picked up petals from the massive trees occasionally and let them shower the grassy ground. He looked to the side and saw a small stream make it's way through a stony river bed, its water speckled with soft pink dotts. Though the most stricking feature was located right in the middle of the small hill.

"You've taken your time."

"Mom!" Byakuya looked just as surprised as Katsuo did, when he spotted Yoruichi sitting there on a blanket with a few boxes.

When they approached, Yoruichi smiled up at them, but neither of the two noticed the change in her composure, as she felt a lightheaded euphoria run through her veins at her son's outburst. Funny how one word he so casually used, could have such an effect on her.

"Why so surprised? This is a family trip after all. Oh...and I even brought something to eat. But for now...why don't we just relax?" With this said, she leaned back and closed her eyes, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.

Katsuo looked at his father shortly and went to his mother's side, leaving him standing alone. Byakuya hesitated for a second, till he decided, that it would do him no good to just stand around there and sat down onto the blanket too.

When Yoruichi tried to catch his gaze, he pointedly looked into the other direction. Of course she'd show up here and of course she would interfere with his business again. He would never show his gratitude to her, even though he had to admit, that this was the perfect spot.

She could only all too well imagine what his face looked like right now and she couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling from her lips. Katsuo looked at his mother, who had apparently started laughing out of nowhere. He just raised an eyebrow, shook his head softly and opened the sketchbook, he had brought along.

Yoruichi had forgotten how much she loved being by the cold captain's side and how he always made her laugh, even though most of it was unintentional.

Her laughter turned into a content sigh and she dropped back down onto the blanket, she had laid out for them.

Silence fell over them and yet no one felt the need to speak. The wind blew over the low hill softly, losing itself into a gentle breeze; nothing more than a caress to the skin.

Yoruichi breathed deeply, taking in the earthy scent around her. She always enjoyed just lying in the garden listening to the sounds around her and letting all her worries be carried away.

After a few more minutes Katsuo stood up and walked over to the little river. She had to squint her eyes against the sun, that was shining into her face, to see him lean over and let the clear water run over his fingertips. She was so focused on the gentle smile on her son's face, that she didn't notice Byakuya turn around to look at her.

He couldn't get her words out of his head.

.._A family trip_...

The sun got caught in her eyes and made them the most exotic and beautiful color, he had ever seen. But as he saw the light reflect on her purple hair, he corrected that thought and it took all his willpower, not to reach out his hand and feel their texture. Finally Yoruichi felt his stare and tilted her head to the side to look at him. He tried to avert his gaze quickly, but she had caught the fascination in his eyes. Before she could speak to taunt him, he decided to cut her of:

"_Our _favourite sleeping spot huh?"

She blinked, until she finally realized, what he was talking about.

A grin spread across her face.

"Don't you remember the lovely time we spend here?" He almost rolled his eyes at this. His memories seemed to differ greatly from those, she had harbored all those years.

"I remember the lovely time **you** had, while you dragged me here." Smiling mischievously, Yoruichi scooted a little closer and leaned towards him.

"Well...**I** remember a certain someone, falling asleep with his head in my lap. You seemed to enjoy your time quite a lot back then."

Byakuya kept silent and she knew, he was intentionally ignoring her once again. He had his face turned away from her, so she had no choice but to lay her head on his lap to see his face. He nearly jumped up, as he felt her head press down on his thigh. His first impulse was to push her away from him, but she would probably be satisfied with the fact, that her actions bothered him, so he only glared at her before closing his eyes.

Yoruichi still watched him intently, waiting for any signs of annoyance, but apart from the glare, he gave her, he seemed pretty relaxed. In fact, after a few seconds she could feel the muscles in his thighs loosen up a little and his whole posture started to get softer. Even though his back was still perfectly straight, as if he was sitting in a chair. Strangely that irked her a little and she nearly reached out for him to make him bend down a little. Anything to change that perfect line. Why couldn't he just let go of everything for a while? Why couldn't he enjoy his free time? She would have to work on that. Another point on her never ending list. She made sure to mentally highlight this one though.

Her eyes wandered to his face, that still had a tense twist to it. That didn't stop her from noticing his handsome features though.

Looks like this hadn't dimmed even the slightest over the last few years. Maybe it grew even more proficient...

A gentle breeze scattered the luscious scent of the pink petals around them and Yoruichi took a deep breath, as it swept past her. She closed her eyes to enjoy the peacefull moment and all the other sensations, that she felt, sharpened. She could feel Byakuya breathe beside her and with every breath his robes softly brushed her right cheek. Everything seemed to slow down and rest, as she concentrated solely on the man beside her. His body heat engulfed her head and spread over her neck, across her whole body, seemingly warming her from the inside. She had a hard time staying conscious and after a few more second, she lost the fight against her drowsiness...

* * *

"...we could try pushing her into the river."

Yoruichi's eyes snapped open to see her son lean over her and filling her vision.

"If you're prepared to get grounded for the rest of the month."

He threw his head back and laughed. And not even Yoruichi could deny that it sounded almost exactly like her own carefree laughter.

"You? Ground me?"

"Oh don't get too cocky, boy. I am still your mother."

Just as she was about to teach her son some respect, her stomach growled in protest. Moaning softly, she put a hand onto her stomach, as if to calm it down.

"Looks like you'll have to wait for your punishment."

With sparkling eyes she turned around to roam through the various boxes, she had brought along. She almost looked like a child unpacking presents on christmas morning.

Katsuo watched his mother, stunned by how she kept pulling dish after dish out of the white boxes.

"How are we gonna eat all of this?"

Byakuya raised an eyebrow at this. Katsuo wasn't used to his mother's eating habits, but Byakuya still remembered all to well, how Yoruichi had basically inhaled everything she could find on more than one ocassion.

"Just watch your mother."

A perplexed look crossed Katsuo's face at the tone in his father's voice, but he decided against asking and sat down next to him.

Now, that she had emptied every box and arranged everything on the blanket, Yoruichi looked up and grinned happily.

Neither Byakuya, nor his son moved a muscle as she grinned at them.

"Well...go ahead." She handed chopsticks to both of them and snatched her own, as she decided what to eat first.

Byakuya had to hide his smile at his son's incredulous expression. The piece of meat he had intended to eat seemed forgotten, as he watched his mother devour bowl after bowl of various foods.

It felt like an eternity until Yoruichi was finished with her meal. Her companions had finished long ago and hadn't eaten half of the amount she had.

With a content sigh Yoruichi let herself fall back onto her back, and stroked her full stomach.

Byakuya just shook his head, while his son smiled.

Silence once again fell over them, as they all enjoyed the evening sun.

As the Head of the Kuchiki family watched his son, the sunrays dance across his face and the wind play with his black hair, he noticed his sketchbook, that he had put aside during their meal.

"May I see?" Katsuo flinched, as Byakuya's voice ripped him out of his thoughts.

"Huh?"

With a nod of his head, the captain motioned towards the sketchbook right next to his son's knee. Katsuo blushed lightly, as he rushed to give the requested drawings to his father.

As Byakuya opened it, he could barely believe his eyes. The cherry tree, that seemed to rise up on the blank paper, looked as if its branches would soon rustle with the wind that blowed over the low hill.

Yoruichi took a look out of the corner of her eyes.

_Looks like he inherited his artistic skills from his father. *** **_

A smile crossed Byakuya's face and carefully, so as not to destroy any of them, he turned page after page to look at the detailed black and white drawings, his son had created.

Katsuo watched anxiously, as his father looked at every single one of his pictures with interest. He bit his lip in anticipation and leaned forward, restlessly waiting for his father's comment.

After what felt like a lifetime, Byakuya closed the sketchbook and gave it back to his son, his expression revealing nothing much to Katsuo's annoyance.

"Do you like them?"

He had trouble keeping his voice even. Patience had always been one of his weaknesses and his father was straining it endlessly. The nobleman's expression hadn't changed yet and he had closed his eyes, as if to ponder the question.

Byakuya wasn't sure, how he was supposed to answer to this. He really liked his drawings. They were excellent. Wasn't it expected of him to praise him for his effort, no matter how bad they were? But his drawings were good, so why not praise him? Would he grow too overconfident, when he praised him too much? That's probably the most difficult thing about being a parent...Keeping the balance. It was all about keeing the balance. If he was too soft, his son would end up spoiled and when he was too hard on him, he would probably grow to resent him. His heart winced softly at the very thought of it. He needed some kind of plan, a pattern, which showed him what kind of answer he was supposed to give. There was no way he'd risk making mistakes, he had always excelled on anything so he wasn't going to do this anything but perfect. He should probably find some books on this topic, so that he could prepare himself for the future.

While Byakuya tried to remember if he had ever seen a book on any educational concepts in the vast Kuchiki library, Yoruichi only rolled her eyes.

Byakuya hadn't answered to Katsuo's question yet, and she was sure he was trying to figure out some secret concept on how to answer. She almost shook her head at this. It was so like him to try to solve something like this with cold logic.

Seriously! That man was just too infaturating for his own good at times. Trying to work out a masterplan, just because he was asked such a simple question by his son? He will have to learn, that there was no 'correct' answer to this. No one was going to put a mark on it or scold him for it. Well maybe she would, but that was not the point. It was almost funny to see, how he struggled because of a simple question, that everyone would have answered without thinking since this was not a question, that required facts and set circumstances, he was probably unsure of how to answer it. Not that he would ever admit, that he was uncertain about anything. Soon enough he will notice, that there is no need for him to think about it. She thought it to be ridiculous to not tell him that he liked his drawings; there was no reason not to. That man's just too stuck up.

She sighed at the thought of it. Katsuo would need a lot of patience in the future.

A few more seconds of silence passed, as Byakuya was lost in his thoughts and after a while Katsuo's heart fell.

_He doesn't like my drawings._

Disappointment and a bitter feeling washed through him, a slow prickle at first but it grew stronger and stronger with every passing second. The metallic taste of rejection made his mouth dry and he let his hair shadow his eyes as not to show, how much this affected him. His father's disapproval hurt him more, than he had thought.

Noticing her son's actions, Yoruichi stood up to walk towards the little stream and while passing Byakuya, she punched his shoulder lightly. Just as she had predicted, his eyes shot open to glare at her, but she pretended not to notice anything and with a soft movement of her eyes, she gestured towards Katsuo.

The captain followed her gaze and blinked surprised, when he saw Katsuo's troubled face. Instinctively he reached out for him, but before he could touch his son's shoulder he hesitated. His hand stayed in mid air, till he pulled it back again.

Yoruichi was disappointed, when she saw this. She had thought, he would finally do what his heart told him to, but it looked like she was mistaken. She would have to make him swallow his pride some day soon, so he could loosen up a little. Frowning, she turned around and let the ice cold water wash around her wrists. A soft, pink petal bumped into her hand and caressed her hand softly, as it was taken away by the current.

Byakuya shifted his weight onto his knees, uncomfortable with the situation. but he was feeling restless and uneasy when he looked at Katsuo's face, knowing that he was the cause of it. So he did the only thing he could think of: he told him the truth.

"I like them all."

Yoruichi felt the strong urge to walk towards him and hit his head. He could have said so from the beginning. Resisting the temptation, she just sighed softly and continued to pretend to be oblivious to the two still sitting on the blanket.

The young boy looked up, surprised by his father's words, but a faint shining could be seen in his eyes, if you only looked hard enough. He tried to accept his compliment nonchalantly, but he couldn't surpress the joyous smile, that seized control of his lips, and as his father looked up, he quickly averted his eyes with a soft pink blush present on his face.

Yoruichi's laughter filled the air and with a few quick steps, she was standing next to them again. They looked up at her and she crossed her arms across her breasts, grinning widely.

Instantly both of them knew that she was up to no good, even though Katsuo didn't know her nowhere near as long as Byakuya, they shared the same uneasy feeling. She leaned forward and grabbed something out of the various boxes; and while Katsuo was occupied with being surprised, since he thought they had been empty, Byakuya felt like a teenager again when he saw her hide something behind her back, with a triumphant look on her face.

"What is it?" Katsuo's voice was wary, but he was too curious to simply ignore it.

Yoruichi only grinned.

"Drumroll please..."

Seeing their blank expressions, she decided to scip that part.

With sparkling eyes she presented the white, leathery ball, she held in her right hand.

"Lets play a game." She threw the ball towards Byakuya, unnecessarily hard, but she knew he would catch it anyway.

"What game?" Katsuo was already on his feet and it was, as if you could touch the enthusiasm that rolled off of him in waves. His spirit and passion definitely matched the one of his mother and Byakuya knew, that this would give him a lot to worry about in the future. But he couldn't bring himself to resent that fact either.

"Volleyball."

While Katsuo ran across the green hill to a spot about ten yards away, Byakuya's expression remained as blank as it had been before. He had never heard of a game like this before, so it apparently was something she had learned in the human world and Byakuya wasn't too keen on playing any of those foolish, human games.

"Don't worry. I'll explain the rules to you."

With a quick wave of her hand, she motioned for him to come with her. Reluctant, he hesitated at first but Katsuo seemed so eager to play, that he released a soft breath before following her.

"Alright! The only thing you have to do, is pass the ball onto one of us. Since we don't really have a net here, we're going to improvise a little. Just hold your hands like this." She held her hands in a strange position, with her palms turned towards the sky and her forearms bent forward.

Feeling a little awkward, he copied her posture. She walked towards him and with one slender finger, she drew a small circle onto his forearm. A shiver ran down his spine at the feathery touch, but she continued explaining, so she didn't notice.

"This is were the ball is supposed to hit. Just move your arms upwards like this." A quick demonstration on her part. "Well you'll learn while we play."

With this said, she danced across the grass, a little farther away from him and Katsuo, so that they were forming a loose triangle.

"Ready?"

After a nod from both of his parents, the black haired boy threw the ball up in the air, and hit it hard, sending it hurling towards his father.

When he saw the ball coming towards him, Byakuya got ready just as he was shown, and as soon as he felt the leather touch his skin, he trusted his arms upwards.

...

The ball flew right into one of the cherry trees and leaves and blossoms fell towards the ground, as the white projectile ripped trough its branches.

Katsuo and Yoruichi both burst out laughing at the dumbfounded look on his face.

The boy kneeled onto the ground, not able to stay standing anymore, with tears streaming down his eyes. It was hard for him to speak since he couldn't even breathe properly.

"Dad...You...suck...at volleyball."

* * *

It was late evening when Byakuya could finally settle into an armchair next to a cracking fire. Katsuo, who had been almost too tired to walk in the end, was already sleeping. He closed his eyes for a few second to relax, but after a while he had to open them again. There was still work to be done.

The paperwork, he had taken with him to spend the day with his son, was lying in front of him on a low table. Fighting with himself, he finally picked up the pen he had put beside his papers and started to sort through the newest reports. The amount of papers seemed endless and every paragraph, he had to read, made it feel like it was too much for him to take.

He could feel the impatience nagging at his bones, a slow, dense tingling, that made his limbs heavy, as if they themselves were unwilling to continue. He hated that feeling. This would turn out to be a battle of his will against his own desire. Just what he needed right now.

To make matters worse the comforting heat coming from the fire beside him, made him grow drowsy and his body was getting lazy. Soon he could barely keep his eyes from falling shut, his cheeks flushed from the surrounding warmth.

With a heavy sigh he signed his name under the next set of reports, as the door opened.

Byakuya nearly groaned, when he saw, who stepped inside the room. As if it wasn't hard enough to deal with his own reluctance, Yoruichi skipped over the polished, wodden floor to his side and sat down into an armchair opposite of him.

To his surprise she didn't say anything, as she watched the red flames dance and eat away on the blackened wood in the great fireplace.

After a while he focused once more onto his paperwork, but his attention soon drifted away from the paper in his hands to the black skinned woman, whose gaze never left the fire and looked almost longingly.

Little did he know, that her thoughts were not focused on the object she was looking at, but on the man sitting just a few feet away from her.

All he knew, was the way her skin looked like the most lucious velvet, he had ever seen, as it shone in the orange light, and he longed to touch that foreign fabric.

He dropped his papers in surprise, as she yawned loudly and stretched herself in a catlike manner.

She leaned forward and settled her chin in her hand, while resting her elbow on the soft armrest of her chair.

"Finished?"

He only scowled and bend to pick it up, after a few seconds of consideration and knowing that it was senseless to continue with her present, he put his work aside.

That didn't mean that he was going to give her any attention now though, at least not willingly.

She let a few seconds pass in silence, so that he could relax a little and calm his annoyance.

With a quick movement she settled onto his armrest and leaned her arms across the back of his chair. "Today has been a really nice day, don't you think?"

He pointedly looked in the other direction and didn't say anything at first, but she would have bugged him until he finally answered anyway, so he decided it would be best to answer her right away.

"Yes it was...despite of your intrusion."

She laughed and bumped into him lightly. "I know you enjoyed that excursion just as much as I did. And Katsuo was happy too."

He couldn't deny any of her words and in fact, he was deeply satisfied to know, that his son had enjoyed the trip, he never really said anything, but his smile was more than enough to show them, what those little moments had ment to him.

Byakuya couldn't stop the faint feeling of sadness, that tried to pull him down at the thought, that Katsuo had spent a long time alone, missing the opportunity of seeing his parents year after year.

He shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. There was no use to thinking like this, Katsuo was home now after all, and he will do his best to make his son forget everything about his past.

Noticing his glum look, Yoruichi put a hand onto his shoulder to get his attention. Her eyes stared into his as he looked up, and he could almost feel her worry as if it was his own.

He couldn't take his eyes away from her, caught by the golden depths. Her eyes held countless shades of gold, amber, colors he had no name for and every single one had him in tight control.

Yoruichi meanwhile was just as mesmerized by the man in front of her. Just a second ago she had been worrying about him, and all it took for him to have her completely senseless, was one single look. One admittedly breathtaking look.

How come she never noticed, how unique they were, before? Some would think that grey eyes tend to be dull, but to Yoruichi they were the most enthralling color she had ever seen. They shone with a hidden spirit and she wanted to reach out and take it as hers. Make the bright intelligence and barely noticeable curiosity, that reminded her so much of his younger self, her own. And behind all this, obscured from view by a thin veil of caution, was a passion she longed to lure out of its hiding place.

Her heart pounded with desire and for the split of a second she was afraid it might jump out of her chest. As if drawn by invisible strings, she slowly moved forwards and her eyes fell to his lips for the first time this evening.

Noticing her eyes flicker towards his lips and her head move closer to his, Byakuya could feel a harsh, but surprisingly exquisite, fire burn through his veins. It felt like time itself had stopped and soon he could feel her soft breath on his lips. That soft contact only fueled the burning that gripped his heart, which was running on full speed by now, and every coherent thought was wiped away, as he leaned forward to meet her, all the while inclining his head to the right. Their lips were only a breath away now and he could almost feel her lips on his, his body urging him forward, trying to get him to claim what it deemed to be his to take.

A loud crack of the fire next to them ripped them out of their trance.

Both of their heads snapped towards the source of the noise, and when Yoruichi turned around to continue where they left of, Byakuya was already standing. Without looking at her once, he walked past her, trying to get a grip on his breathing. His heart was still beating furiously and it seemed as if it would take him a while to slow it down to a reasonable pace.

"I'll be going to bed now."

He hoped she couldn't hear his breathless tone or the soft confusion in his voice. He quickly opened and closed the door, relieved to be out of that room, shocked by his own willingness.

Yoruichi threw her head back into the chair and groaned loudly. That man was too much for her. She was so close...

A smirk spread across her lips and she laughed lightly.

_Don't worry, I'll make those lips mine soon enough, Byakuya-bo. _

_

* * *

_

Byakuya was restless.

When he had finally settled in his bed, after taking a shower to get that infuriating woman out of his mind, which didn't help at all, the fatigue he had been feeling before was gone completely. Even the slightest thought of their proximity made him feel uneasy. Not in a completely bad way, which was the part, that kept him awake the most.

He could deal with resenting or hating it, but this strange tingling reminded him too much of fourteen years ago. At that time he had had his heart broken and he could still feel the bitter taste of it. Those experiences had made him careful and reluctant to have anyone affect him like this ever again.

But there she was, crashing into his life and capturing him with no effort at all. He hated the impact she had on him and he swore, that he wasn't going to let her get her way with him ever again. But as his mind swore bitterly, trying its hardest to convince itself by ignoring every other thought and fueling its passionate fit with past memories, his soul could only smile softly, deciding to keep silent for now. There would come a time when the storms of fury ebb away to give way to something else.

Right now he stayed stubborn though, and hoped, that she wouldn't repeat her visit from the previous night, demanding to sleep in his bed.

...

or at least wait till he was asleep.

Countless minutes passed, before fatigue finally overruled his sleepless spirit and his consciousness cut of completely.

* * *

When Yoruichi woke up, the sun was barely beginning to rise. She hadn't bothered pulling the curtains close, which Byakuya had obviously forgotten too. And now she had a clear view of the sky, painted in a rich orange that spilled over roofs and trees and everything else it touched.

She had always loved the sunrise. She used to watch them together with her father, when she was young and she could hear his voice, sounding just like it did back then, telling her that one day she was going to watch them with someone else. Of course she had denied that back then, but her father only smiled at her with a hidden secret sealed behind his lips, which she hadn't understood. He told her of a precious someone, that would replace him at her side and she had jumped up, angry at his words, nearly bursting into tears, swearing that there would never be someone else. And he had comforted her, still smiling that smile. And all those years later she finally understood, what he had ment. And she knew, why he hadn't seemed troubled by the thought of her having somebody else beside her at all. Because he had known, what it felt like. She still remembered those loving looks he gave her mother, even after years of being married.

With her memories still present in her mind, she turned her head to look at Byakuya, her hair sliding across her pillow.

And he looked right back at her.

She blinked at him, surprised by his strong gaze and she could only chuckle quietly at that strange moment.

"Did I wake you up?"

"Before or after you crept into my bed without permission?"

His voice was rough from sleep, his eyes dropped a little, still glazed and his usually smooth hair was an unruly mess, that fell over his shoulder.

It took Yoruichi's system a lot more effort than usually to keep up their work and her eyes grew soft, as her chest cavity kept her heart from extending too far. He looked so unbearably cute like this.

She had never thought she would be able to apply that word to him, but right now she even thought of it as insufficient. 'Adorable' would come closer to the real thing, as unbelievable as it was.

Of course Byakuya noticed her stare and the smile playing around her lips.

"What?"

He felt an uneasy tigthening in his stomach again and tried to keep her from staring.

Shaking her head lightly, she tried to get rid of these thoughts and suddenly she remembered something important.

"Actually...there is something I need to tell you."

Byakuya sighed and fell back into the white sheets, closing his eyes and waiting for Yoruichi to get it over with. Everytime she started a conversation like this it turned out to be something...surprising.

"It's nothing bad...well, not _that_ bad." She laughed loudly and when his only response turned out to be a confused look, she elaborated:

"My parents are going to visit today."

"... ... ... Terrific."

He quickly pulled the blanket over his head. He had been awake for a few minutes now and regreted it already.

* * *

***** Yoruichi is being sarcastic here, in case you didn't notice xD

Yep yep. Yoru's parents visiting..this is going to get... ... ... interesting.

Comments are always appreciated. They are one of the things that get me through the trouble. xD


	10. Sometimes you need a little push

Is it true? Yes it is! An update!

* * *

Sighing softly she sat down next to him.

"You have been staring at the garden since Yoruichi left. And it's been hours."

Her companion only closed his eyes and stayed silent. She knew exactly what he was thinking about. They had been married for so long she couldn't even remember her life without him. She could read his expressions like an open book and he knew that there was no way for him to hide it. He had given that up years ago.

A servant came up with a tray of tea and set it down besides them. With a smile Amaya dismissed him and he left with a bow, closing the door silently so as not to disturb his masters.

Picking up one of the teacups, she handed it to him.

He looked down at his wife and rolled his eyes as he saw her knowing smile. He pointedly looked in the other direction and started to sip from his tea. The hot fluid warmed his insides and he realized how cold it was outside. Suddenly he felt a warm hand touch his arm and he looked back at his wife. Without saying a word she leaned against him and laid down her head on his shoulder.

Seconds passed and he listened to the wind pass through the leaves of the trees nearby. It had been a wonderful day, but now that the sun was gone it started to get chilly outside.

A few hours ago Yoruichi had stopped by. They had expected her to show up at some point and they had been overjoyed by her appearance. And after the tearful greeting of her mother, he had swept his daughter up in his arms, glad to see her so healthy and well.

What came afterwards was a major surprise though. He had nearly chocked on his food as she told them about her son - his grandson - at breakfast. Staring at her in disbelief he had been too shocked to say or feel anything. What had shocked him the most though was the name of her son's father. Byakuya Kuchiki. **Byakuya Kuchiki!** He still couldn't wrap his mind around that. The young, bad tempered noble she had played with when she was young. He had never thought there was any kind of attraction between those two over all those years, not even for a second.

And years later he finds himself having a grandson, whose father happens to be the fragile boy he had seen back then.

She had left very quickly since she had a trip planed with those two. A family trip...

Beforehand they had agreed to a visit to the Kuchiki house for the next day. A part of him couldn't wait for it. He wanted to see this newest and surprising addition to their family. He wanted to see if he was anything like a Shihoin at all. She had told them that he looked a lot like his father. He had secretly always wished for a grandson. The only thing that bothered him was that his grandchild would have to have a father as well.

He remembered telling her that she would find a nice man someday and that she would be happy, but that seemed such a long way to go back then. She had been a little girl and it had been easy for him to be generous while her head was still full with games and childish things, when attraction and love were concepts that were too hard for her to understand. And now...he had to face Byakuya Kuchiki tomorrow. He was not ready yet. There had been no warning, no time to get used to the thought. He didn't have anything against the young man but he couldn't stop that uneasy feeling either. He had tried to sort out his feelings and thoughts over the last few hours but he didn't seem to make any progress. In the end he decided to stay as tolerant as he could. Things would probably look different tomorrow anyway.

"Are we going to talk about it?"

A little startled, he looked down at his wife, who raised one of her eyebrows, urging him to answer.

Smiling softly he wrapped his left arm around her and pulled her closer to him, rubbing her arm as he noticed how cold they were.

"Do I really need to say anything?"

Standing up, she reached for his hand and made him stand up with her.

"We should go to bed. Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day."

The smile that lightened up her face made him respond with one of his own. That was typical for his wife. He could already see her spoil that boy with a fervor only grandmothers could muster.

"Maybe I should go alone tomorrow. Yoruichi is not going to be happy when she finds out that her son got crushed to death by his grandmother."

Slapping his shoulder, Amaya went inside and shut the door before he could step inside. "Hey!"

* * *

He stood in front of the massive building, hesitating at the grand entrance door. The sun illuminated the white walls and made them look unnatural, absolutely flawless.

What caught his eyes the most was the symbol emblazoned right above him though, the blinding light making it glow as if it shone with the pride of the ancient family it represented.

He could imagine that various servants hesitated in front of the gates, caught in a strange state of admiration and fear, before they stepped forward, uncomfortable as if they expected to be chastised at any second.

But he was unimpressed.

He hesitated for a different reason...the only reason that changed lots of things, especially his own free will: His wife.

Crossing his arms in front of his chest it was all he could do to prevent himself from tapping his foot impatiently.

His wife was walking leisurely along the path he had come from as well, smiling sweetly at him as she saw his annoyed expression.

"Could you hurry up? I'm getting old over here."

But she wouldn't walk faster no matter what he said, so he had to wait till she finally reached him.

"You're already old, honey."

His expression didn't change in the least and even though she had promised herself not to laugh at his antics, she couldn't hold back.

Of course being laughed at didn't help his mood at all and the look he gave his wife made her stop laughing. Her lips curved into a loving smile as she raised a hand to stroke his cheek softly. And like every other time he was defenseless against his wife's disarming affection. Something her daughter had inherited as well. His frown slowly vanished and transformed into a weary look. He knew he was being silly and as if to apologize he took her hand and squeezed it softly.

"You're thinking too much. Just let it happen for once."

Just as he was about to answer a voice stopped both of them.

"Welcome."

Surprised they turned around to see none other than Byakuya Kuchiki standing on the threshold of the grand entrance door. Even though Hiroshi knew who was standing there, he doubted that the man standing before him was the teenager he had once known. The changes were hard to overlook. Besides the obvious changes in appearance, which he had expected, this man was calm and reserved. And even though his words had been friendly they still felt cold to him, without any feeling.

And Hiroshi found himself...disliking him.

Amaya saw the look in her husband's eyes and almost sighed. Smiling encouragingly at the young man in front of her, she hoped that this day wouldn't end in disaster.

Several seconds passed and the atmosphere grew awkward as nobody of them moved an inch.

Knowing that she would have to end this quickly or they would never get out of this situation, Amaya stepped forward and extended her hand towards the dark haired noble.

"It's been a while we saw each other. We're happy to be here today. Thank you so much for your generous invitation." Of course she knew that the invitation came from Yoruichi's side entirely and he had no choice but to go along with it, but that little fact could be swept under the carpet to ease this situation. She could have sworn she saw relief flash through his eyes as he took her hand softly, doing his best to look as welcoming as he could.

"There is nothing you need to thank me for, Lady Shihoin." Placing her other hand on top of their joined hands she gave him another smile, before she slid her arm through his and pulled him inside. "Now lets skip this whole greeting and get to the more important things..."

Hiroshi still stood outside staring at his wife's back as she dragged Byakuya further inside. Shaking his head, he hurried after them knowing full well that he would never find his way through the mansion with no guide at his side.

When he reached the other two he could hear his wife bombarding the young man with questions of his well being, his work and of course his son. She never let him fall silent even though they were going quite a long way through the mansion and even though he didn't really like him, he couldn't help but pity the young man. Just when Byakuya assured Amaya that Katsuo was excited to meet them, they heard Yoruichi's voice in the room next to them, which happened to be the kitchen.

The whole party stopped and judging from Byakuya's expression he hadn't expected her to be in there.

_"We should have known she'd be in there." _Smiling slightly at his thought, he opened the door a few inches so they could look through.

Yoruichi was standing with her back to them, obviously speaking to someone. Stepping to the side to see who he was talking to, Hiroshi's eyes widened when he saw the person standing across from her. Hiroshi and Amaya both instantly recognized him. They had expected him to look like his father, Yoruichi had said so after all, but they hadn't expected the similarity to be quite this profound.

Katsuo was currently going through the pages of the book he was holding while his mother examined something in her hand. Looking up at her son she held the object out for him to see. Recognizing the object as a pudding, Hiroshi pushed the door open to step through and greet them. "Do you think I can eat that?" Just when Byakuya was about to announce their presence, his son looked up and mustered his mother. All of them wondered at the strange expression that crossed Katsuo's face as he pointedly looked at his mother from head to toe. Raising his eyebrow, he turned around slightly, focusing once again on his book while a mischievous smirk appeared on his lips and Byakuya found himself comparing it to Yoruichi's, knowing that he was up to something.

His tone was dead serious when he closed his book and headed for the back door that lead to the garden. "I would rethink that if I were you."***** Katsuo could see his mother's shocked face as realization hit her, and deciding it was better to leave, he sprinted the last steps out of the door.

With a sharp intake of breath, Yoruichi dropped the pudding and her lips curled up in a grin.

"You think you can escape me?" She was already at the kitchen door before she even finished the sentence, her eyes trained on her victim. "You're going to pay for this." Her muscles kicked into action before she even consciously decided for it, and she nearly flew across the distance that separated herself and her son. Hitting him in the side she knocked him off balance and they both went falling through the door, which Katsuo had opened to escape into the garden.

Hiroshi's booming laughter filled the air. Gripping the wooden frame of the kitchen door he tried to hold himself upright while his body shook with laughter.

Amaya stood beside him, laughing as well, which made him laugh only harder. Even Byakuya was tempted to laugh when he heard the sounds Amaya made. To say that Amaya's laughter was hilarious was clearly an understatement...Byakuya had never heard sounds quite like this before. Wiping the tears out of his eyes Hiroshi tried to catch his breath. "Looks like he really is a Shihoin after all."

Catching the hint of a smile on the other man's lips, he turned his head to look at him fully, but as he finally had a clear view of his face he found no trace of it.

He had no time to think about it though as Amaya took his arm, still chuckling slightly, and they all went to the garden, where they could hear Yoruichi torturing her son.

When they reached the garden they could see Yoruichi kneeling over him, pushing him to the ground while she tickled his sides. Every attempt on escape was futile and as Katsuo tried to throw his mother off balance she simply took his arm and twisted it on his back, effectively pinning him to the ground. Panting heavily he could barely speak while still trying to get out of his mother's grip. "You're hurting me!"

Laughing loudly she pushed him into the ground one last time before standing up. "You should have thought about this before ."

Katsuo got onto his feet sluggishly, examining his dirty appearance. "Mom! Look at this! You ripped my shirt!" And sure enough his white shirt had a large gap on one side, leaving his chest almost entirely exposed. His mother only chuckled and whistled appreciatively causing her son's cheeks to flame red.

"What kind of mother are you? Is that the way you raise your kids? You should be arrested for child abuse." He gathered the ripped shreds of clothes in his arms and tried to walk past her but he was restrained once more by Yoruichi's arms around him.

"My poor child!" With fake worry she squeezed him closer to her chest, wiping black strands of hair out of his face while kissing his pink cheeks. Amaya's strange laughter filled the air and only the appearance of a young maid, who announced that dinner had been prepared, seemed to calm her down enough to walk inside.

* * *

As expected dinner was a grand experience. The cooks and maids had left nothing to chance. The table all but bend under the weight of all kinds of delicacies. Neither Amaya nor Hiroshi had to look to know that Yoruichi was seeing stars by now. If they could count on anything it was their daughter's appetite. There had been a time where Amaya had worried about that but seeing as Yoruichi's waist stayed as slim as ever she had given up on worrying a long time ago.

Without further ado they sat down and even Hiroshi had to admit that the sight was mouthwatering. Amaya sat down right next to Katsuo and proceeded to hog all his attention for the rest of dinner. It went along pretty smoothly even though Byakuya said little but to his relief Amaya was chatty enough for everyone. And besides making Katsuo promise to visit the Shihoin manor in the near future she amused him with little stories of Yoruichi's youth. In fact she told him so many that Yoruichi started to chastise her for corrupting her son's image of her.

And after telling him the story of how she ran naked through the mansion and a good part of the neighborhood with her dress waving behind her like a flag since she had decided that it was way too restraining to actually wear it, Yoruichi glared at her mother so hard she bit her lip with a smile. But she only stayed silent after whispering one last sentence to her grandson. "You should have seen the faces of the elders when they saw her prancing around in her birthday suit. Not like decency was ever one of her strong points." Both laughed conspiratorial and Yoruichi just threw her father a pleading look, but he only shrugged his shoulders. To her embarrassment Byakuya looked at her out of the corner of his eyes while trying to hide a smile of his own.

"What? With a body like this I don't need to hide anything. I was probably doing them a favor."

He only rolled his eyes in response.

They spent a good two hours like this. Even Amaya had given up on making Byakuya talk on his own accord but she kept on asking his opinion at the necessary times and urged him with such good-natured softness that he couldn't help but try to give her as much as he could.

Of course Yoruichi had already caught up on her mother's plan and after she had interrogated Byakuya on the absolutely ravishing flowers in front of the window, she threw her mother a knowing look. Amaya only avoided her eyes and smirked.

That left Yoruichi no option but to wait for her mother to make her move and she didn't need to wait long as after a few more minutes Amaya announced that she would like to get some fresh air.

"Yoruichi, wouldn't you like to accompany me?" The smile on her mother's face told her that she had no other option.

"Of course. I would love to." The sarcasm in her voice earned her a short glare.

Both stood up and when Hiroshi leaned forward as if to accompany them, Amaya quickly waved her hand. "Oh no. We will be just fine on our own. This will be too boring for you guys anyway. With all the girl talk and so on..." She smiled at them in the sweetest manner possible and they couldn't refuse. Byakuya wondered what was going on with the Shihoin women that you couldn't say no to them no matter what. Hiroshi fell back into his seat.

"I promised Hana I would let her show me something today. So if nobody minds I'm going to go find her now." Nobody objected Katsuo's request and before they knew it Byakuya was left alone with Yoruichi's father after both women left the room in the highest mood humanly possible.

* * *

To say that the silence that followed turned out to be awkward would have been an understatement. Hiroshi was furious at his wife for leaving him in this situation. He didn't really know what to say to the young man in front of him, who was clearly not comfortable with being alone with him either. He tried to take a good look at the man over the rim of his tea cup while remaining as inconspicuous as he could. Byakuya had his eyes closed and looked bored out of his wits. Somehow this rubbed him the wrong way. Ok...He never actually spoke to him before but that man could at least make some effort!

Little did he know that Byakuya tried his hardest to think of a way to get out of this situation as smoothly as possible. He didn't know anything about Yoruichi's father besides his military accomplishments and those were not really a fitting topic. He was his son's grandfather after all so he would have to try to get along with him as good as possible. But he had no idea how! Everyone knew he wasn't really the chatty type and would usually let him of the hook when alone with him, but the older man in front of him seemed to expect him to say something. Of course he respected the man. He was a living legend after all but being alone with him, and this on their first day of meeting was not really easy for him, especially since, as embarrassing as it was, the only thing he could think about was the fact that he got his daughter pregnant. And as at ease as the man in front of him seemed, Byakuya was sure if he started a conversation along those lines, he could say a few parts of his body goodbye that he'd rather keep.

Normally Hiroshi would have just left, but Amaya had thrown him one of her special looks before she took of with Yoruichi. One of those looks that meant something like: _You better do what I want or I'll make the rest of your life a living hell. _Of course she would never really be angry with him for this long, but he wasn't going to risk finding this out first hand. This meant all in all he was screwed. What was he supposed to say to this man? To this vile, evil man that got his little girl pregnant? He had to keep himself from glaring at the man by now. His thoughts were really running wild and he had to keep himself from mentally abusing the young man so as not to grow angrier than he already was.

Byakuya felt the tension in the room grew thicker as he watched a strange shadow pass over Hiroshi's face, while said man looked out the window. He got the feeling the old man was trying to avoid looking at him. Not really encouraging...

And so they kept silent. On a normal day under normal circumstances they might have found a rather agreeable companion in the other, since they both preferred the quiet over unnecessary chatter. The only sound in the big room came from the occasional sip out of the still steaming tea cups. And soon Hiroshi found himself thinking of the moment he became a father. The moment he had held his child for the first time. And while he reminisced his eyes wandered to the dark haired man across from him who happened to look up at him at the same moment. In the brief moment their eyes met a small thought suddenly began to form in Hiroshi's head. _That man is a father now too._

It was enough to make him feel a little guilty about hating him without reason. A small part of him still stubbornly insisted that he had every reason to hate him. But Hiroshi was an honest man and he knew he was being unfair. If he just wasn't so...arrogant and uptight. If he could just see what Yoruichi saw in that man.

He started running his finger along the rim of his tea cup and Byakuya eyed him curiously. If he was anything like Yoruichi he was probably bored by his silence by now. Byakuya knew that and yet...

The loud sigh that escaped Hiroshi's lips startled him out of his thoughts. The older man looked him dead in the eye now and Byakuya found this a lot more uncomfortable than he thought it would be. He was used to other man of power, he was one of them after all but somehow this man made him nervous. Usually Byakuya couldn't care less about what other people thought of him but this was an important meeting. Theoretically they were family now after all.

"Lets be honest." Hiroshi folded his hands in front of him and straightened his back. Byakuya straightened up as well in response to this sudden change and the older man almost found himself smiling at the almost flustered edge in Byakuya's posture. "_Finally! Some sort of emotion." _It made it easier. It made him more human and Hiroshi really needed to remind himself of this fact now.

"_Be nice. He's still young after all. ...And I'll be dead when Amaya finds out I was anything but perfectly lovable." _He almost snorted at his own thoughts. "_Lovable...yeah, fat chance..."_

"I'm not really used to the thought of being a grandfather just yet. And you..." He briefly hesitated, wondering how to put it. "I guess I still have to get used to you too." That was as polite as he could put it without lying.

Byakuya was surprised at the older Shihoin's words. But after his initial worry he was almost relieved now. Hiroshi had set the rules for their conversation and decided to do away with all pretenses and get right to the point. Something Byakuya welcomed. He wasn't one to beat around the bush either. It was tiring and unnecessary.

The dark skinned man watched something akin of a smile cross the Kuchiki's lips in front of him while he set down his cup with a soft clatter.

"I have to get used to being a father as well so I have no expectations."

As much as he hated to admit it, Hiroshi started to like the young man. Just a little...

He still remembered the awkward way he held Yoruichi for the first time in his life, half afraid of crushing her in his grip and he could only sympathize with the young man.

When he saw the slightly conflicted look on Byakuya's face he simply leaned back and waited for him to speak. He had never seen such an expression on this man and had thought him incapable of emotions like this, which made this even more intriguing.

Byakuya caught Hiroshi's questioning look and was taken aback by how familiar it was. And without really wanting to his question had already made it's way across his tongue.

"Is it hard?"

"Huh?" Hiroshi wanted to kick his own butt for such an undignified answer but he was just too surprised by this question. And the embarrassed hesitation on Byakuya's part...somehow amused him.

"Is it hard...to be a good father?"

The question hung in the air for a few seconds. He had tried to make it sound as nonchalantly as he could and yet no matter how leveled his voice had sounded it couldn't hide the ingenuous curiosity that rang in every syllable.

Hiroshi just continued to look at the young man, but the probing edge from before had disappeared. After a while he closed his eyes as if in deep thought, one of his hands at his lips and nodded to himself as if confirming something. One of Yoruichi's special smiles appeared on his lips and he opened his eyes to look at the young man again. Taking his cup, he took a sip of cold tea.

"No." His voice a gentle half-smile. "Not for a good hearted man."

Byakuya frowned.

"And how do I know if I am a good father?"

"A good father is the only one who asks himself that question."

Silence answered but the uncomfortable tension had disappeared. Byakuya was obviously thinking about other things by now and Hiroshi continued to watch him.

_Damn it! _He had planned on coming here and finding a despicable man who only thought of himself. He was prepared for hating every fiber of his being. And he had to go and ruin everything with one simple question. But who was he kidding? _I should have known from the start. _Somehow Yoruichi had ended up choosing him after all. If he had any faith in his upbringing he should have known he was at least a decent man.

The worst thing was that he even started to like him. What a pity! Hating him was so much easier...

* * *

"Maybe you're going at this the wrong way, you know."

Surprised Yoruichi turned around to look at her mother, who had a sly smile on her face. They were currently wandering the woods behind the Kuchiki manor to get some privacy and fresh air.

Yoruichi didn't bother pretending not to know what she was talking about. Her mother had always had a peculiar talent for knowing what others were thinking, especially when it came to her own daughter. And Yoruichi had given up on trying to hide anything from her a long time ago. Her mother had been one of her confidants since she could remember and she valued her insights, so she was curious as to what she had to say now.

"Oh really? Why don't you enlighten me then?"

"Did I ever tell you the story of how I got your father to put on some moves?"

Yoruichi shivered slightly in response.

"More than once..." And she wasn't particularly looking forward to hearing it again. Amaya had to chuckle slightly at her daughter's reluctance.

Her mother remained silent after that and continued along the path. The wind grew stronger and carried the scent of pine wood along. It really was a beautiful day and the sun shone brightly through the treetops and reflected off of her mother's pink kimono. But all this was lost on Yoruichi as she tried to figure out what her mother meant to say.

"Ok. I give up. Just give it to me straight." She knew her mother had been waiting for her to ask this when she saw the big grin on her face.

"Quit...waiting!"

Yoruichi only answered with a blank face.

"Oh come on, honey. You know what I mean. If you keep waiting for him to make any sort of move you'll be as old and wrinkly as I am! With this sort of man you will have to do something about your situation. Force him if you must."

"Are you serious? This must be the least motherly advice you have ever given me. Is a mother even allowed to say something like this?" She couldn't help but laugh at her mother's words.

"You know me, honey. I'm a practical women. If it works, it's good. No need for any fancy pseudo romantic stuff. You know better than I do which buttons to push." She put one of her hands on her daughter's shoulder and squeezed her lightly. "So stop wasting time and push them."

A tender smile crossed Yoruichi's lips and she gave her mother a crushing hug. She always knew just what to say.

After a few seconds she could hear her mother's voice slightly muffled through her hair.

"But don't tell your father I said that or I'll never hear the end of it."

Their joined laughter resounded through the woods just like it had many years ago.

They had walked for a few more minutes before Yoruichi noticed the big grin on her mother's face.

"Oh come on! What now?"

"So..." Amaya deliberately made the word as long as she could.

With a school girlish grin she danced in front of her daughter who had to stop in the middle of her path.

She couldn't help the answering grin that broke across her face when she saw her mother act like that.

And when Amaya wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and said: "So is he the one?", Yoruichi laughed loudly.

"Geez, mother shut up!"

* * *

Amaya squeezed her grandson one more time. "Mom! This is quite enough. You're going to smother him half to death." Yoruichi could only shake her head at her mother's antics. They were standing in front of the gate to the Kuchiki manor now. They had spent the rest of the day together in the garden talking and playing games but all too soon the sun had begun to set and it was getting late. But what should have been a short goodbye turned into a minute long ordeal as her mother continued to hug Katsuo for what seemed like eternity and even her father started to look annoyed. Katsuo meanwhile took everything in a remarkably patient manner but even his smiles started to look slightly forced when he said his goodbyes for the tenth time.

"Okay okay. I get it! But you have to promise me to stay over soon so I can show you around the Shihoin manor." Another hug. Another promise from Katsuo. And Yoruichi's parents finally left.

All three of them stayed for a few more seconds after they watched them leave. "Don't take this the wrong way, Mom...but I'm exhausted!" Yoruichi breathed a sigh of relief when her parents vanished from sight. "Believe me so am I."

Byakuya just turned around to walk back inside.

* * *

He knew what she was going to say the moment he saw the happy grin on her face.

"I knew you'd like him."

"Shut up."

And despite being told to shut her mouth for almost the entire day, Amaya went home highly amused and in the greatest spirit.

* * *

She found him sitting at a table with paperwork scattered around him.

_"Surprise. Surprise. Seriously, this man can't even relax for one day."_

Sitting down in front of him she put both of her elbows on the table and let her head rest on her joined hands. Her grin only got bigger while she waited for him to look at her. He meanwhile tried his best to ignore her, but it was hard to concentrate when he could feel her stare at him without wavering once.

Closing his eyes, he finally sighed loudly. He was way too exhausted to keep this up for long, so he gave in and looked up at her.

"Is there something you need?"

"I'm here to challenge you."

His face showed no change, even though her words had surprised him profoundly. It took him a few moments to remember that her declaration would request an answer from his side.

Clearing his throat, he put the sheet of paper he had been working on back onto his "unfinished" pile.

"I am way too exhausted to participate in any sort of physical exertion."

Yoruichi almost smirked at his words and it took all her strength not to suggest what she had in mind when he spoke of physical exertion.

But she thought it wiser not to mention any of this since it would be contradictory to her goal.

With a prominent pause she let a set of card fall onto the table, all the while making sure that it made as much sound as possible.

It had the desired effect. Byakuya's eyes snapped towards the set of cards now lying on top of his work with a look of utter confusion.

Smiling devilishly she again picked up the cards and turned them around so that he could see them. He instantly recognized them as Hanafuda cards. His father had always had a fondness for them and they had played whenever they got the chance. Those times had been the best of his childhood even though those were simple and calm hours. Just spending time with his father had been enough to make them cherished memories. He blamed his momentary sentimentality, caused by those memories, for what happened next.

When Yoruichi asked whether he would care for a game he accepted after a brief moment of hesitation.

Usually he would have said no, especially since he couldn't help but notice the mischievous glint in her eyes once he said yes.

"Great!" Yoruichi started to shuffle the cards in her hands but stopped shortly after as if she was contemplating something. Obviously an act and she wasn't even trying to hide it. Byakuya simply leaned back and waited for what was to come.

"Lets make this a little more interesting."

He had expected that.

And he didn't even bother to point out how cliché her words were before asking, "And what do you have in mind?"

_"Nothing good obviously."_

"The winner gets one wish. And the other has to comply." Her grin was as self-confident as if she had already won and her expression showed him that she in no way thought she would lose. Maybe that was the reason he agreed to those lunatic conditions but he wanted to wipe that smile of her face. He had to admit that she had awoken his competitive side, which left him no choice but to crush her.

"You do realize that this means I can ask you to stay out of my bed, don't you?"

Her answering smile was dazzling and he started to wonder if she ever stopped smiling.

"_Don't worry...you won't dislike my presence in your bed for long."_

She decided for the more diplomatic: "I'll take the risk." After shuffling the cards for a few more seconds she held them out to him. He took them from her hands and after a moments thought, shuffled them again just to annoy her a little.

This only fired her up more and when he held out the stash towards her she casually took one of the cards making sure to lightly brush his wrist with her fingertips. To her disappointment she didn't see any goosebumps. _"Looks like Byakuya-bo is serious...All the better when I claim my prize."_

Turning her card around to look at it she rejoiced slightly. February.****** Very nice. It would be hard for him to beat that. She watched him take the next card from the set and after a brief glance turned it around so that she could look at it. January. Their eyes locked briefly and she made an appreciative noise when she handed her card back to him.

He shuffled the cards again and gave her 8 cards face down before giving himself the same amount and then eight more onto the table between them face up.

Yoruichi was already busy comparing her cards to the ones on the table and considering which combo she would most likely be able to achieve. She still had to keep in mind that she had to let Byakuya choose first, but seeing the sake cup card open on the table made her sure he was going to choose this one. To her surprise Byakuya set down his cards for her to see. She was about to open her mouth and ask him whether he had forgotten how to play this game when he selected four of his cards and shoved them closer to her.

"Four of a kind." And sure enough he had four cards of the same month. A pretty rare occasion and ironically it was January. She threw her cards down onto the table so that he could collect them. The smug expression on his face as he shuffled the cards made her chuckle. "And here I thought you would go easy on a woman."

A slight smile showed on his lips. He was enjoying himself immensely at the moment, no matter how hard he tried to subdue his feelings.

"Maybe I would. But this is you we're talking about." He had finished dealing out the cards and picked his up to take a look at them.

Yoruichi meanwhile busied herself with contemplating her cards. To her disappointment they were pretty bad.

Looking back up she saw a surprised and hesitant look on Byakuya's face. Catching her look his hand shot up to his lips and her jaw almost dropped when she saw him hiding an uncharacteristic smirk. He cleared his throat for the second time this night and once again picked four out of his cards and set them down. Yoruichi didn't even look at them.

"You can't be serious!" She leaned forward to take a good look at his cards. _"At least it's not January this time." _They were all of the October cards. Which meant once again 6 points for him. The game hadn't even really started yet and she had already lost 12 points.

"_Maybe this isn't such a good idea..." _Throwing down her cards with a little more emphasis this time she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You're cheating! I have never seen two "Four of a Kind" in a row!"

He simply shuffled the cards nonchalantly. "Remember who you're talking to. I don't need to resort to such means." After he dealt out the required number of cards he added, "I can beat you just fine without it."

This time Yoruichi didn't touch her cards and watched Byakuya expectantly. When he raised his eyes from his cards she raised an inquisitive eyebrow. Byakuya just threw her an annoyed look and took one of the cards on the table while showing her that he had the required card. "Don't be ridiculous."

With a loud laugh she picked up her cards. "Well you never know."

This time she had a pretty decent hand and the rest of the rounds continued without any further interruptions. Luckily she had had good cards which enabled her to erase the advantage Byakuya had had, but he didn't make it easy for her. He was a smart man so they ended up fighting over every point. They didn't give each other anything and in the final round their score was back to 50/50, which meant that whoever won this round would end up the winner. Over the course of the game both had stopped smiling and by this point they were dead serious.

Yoruichi dealt the cards since she was lucky enough to win dealership in the previous round. Her heart beat faster than ever before when she picked up her cards. She just had to win this!

She couldn't believe her luck when she found that she had exactly the card she needed to pick up the moon card in the middle of the table and the sake cup card on her hand. _Easy points. Easy points._

Casually she took the moon card of the table. And looked back at Byakuya to see his move. Inside she was already celebrating her victory. There was no way he would be able to collect a combo with just one move. He hesitated briefly and looked into her eyes as if he was trying to see her cards reflected there. With deliberate slowness he took one of his card and took...exactly the one she needed to swap in her sake cup card.

He leaned back and looked at her expectantly, trying to decipher whether his precautions had affected her. She only smiled back.

"_I wouldn't have expected anything less from you." _And this move might have spoiled her chances of winning, but Byakuya couldn't do anything against Yoruichi's huge luck. With a sickly sweet casualty she laid down her sake cup card onto the table. Byakuya almost groaned out loud. Nobody was insane or bold enough to lay down such a valuable card if they didn't have the only remaining card which could secure it.

It was Byakuya's move now and he was tempted to simply throw down his cards since there was no way he could win now, but with a sullen dignity he picked up one of the other cards, which was of course completely useless.

Usually she would savor her victory by drawing out the moment but she quickly took the sake cup card and turned her combo around. She needed him in as good a mood as she could get him after loosing, which was in itself already hard enough.

"Tsukimi-zake.*******" Five points. Their score: 55 for her and 45 for him.

She collected all the cards and set them down onto the table in a neat pile to give him a little time to let her victory sink in.

When she finished he only gave her a defeated sigh and looked at her expectantly.

"Fine. I'll keep my word. What do you want?" He was seething. Why did he agree to this crazy idea? Her parents' visit must have worn him out. He didn't have much time to dwell on such thoughts though as Yoruichi voiced her wish. And it was enough to make him actually fall over slightly.

"A kiss."

He blinked at her, eyes wide.

"Excuse me?" He must have been mistaken. It must have been his imagination. His stupid imagination... He couldn't have heard correctly when she requested a **kiss** from him.

But Yoruichi's expression didn't change, in fact he could almost say that the look in her eyes became almost seductive as she leaned forward to rest her face in her hands, as she had done when she first entered the room. He swallowed heavily as his mouth had suddenly gone dry. No way he would agree to that. Despite that he could feel his heart beat pick up speed. His body once again betraying his mind. And what was worse: he was coming to terms with it.

It had only been a few days since she had come back in his life...with a freaking bulldozer apparently since it took her almost no effort to break him.

"I said: I want a kiss." She emphasized every word and there was no doubt she had actually said that.

He was about to protest but she simply raised a finger to silence him. She almost burst out laughing at the way he stared at her finger as if she had done something absolutely scandalous.

"No, no. You agreed to this, remember? Or is the word of the Byakuya Kuchiki worth nothing?"

He had to admit that she had him right where she wanted him and he would die before breaking his word. Especially now that she had teased him so openly. So he tried a different tactic.

"Are you sure you want to waste the one wish I am unable to refuse on something like that?" He thought this would convince her to reconsider. He thought this would save him. Oh how wrong he was. She simply took that bulldozer of hers and ran him right over.

"What makes you think I'd consider it a waste?"

This was it. How could he refute that? He couldn't even get over the shock of her words or the way his body all but burned his mind to cinder.

And as if this wasn't enough she said the only words which could make it worse.

"Are you that reluctant?" Worse, because in fact he wasn't that reluctant. He wished he was. There was no way he could just walk away now. She was going to get this kiss.

And when she looked him in the eyes she saw that. Silently thanking her mother she leaned forward across the table. She had to move her arms away from her chest since her heart had started beating so frantically she was afraid she would squash it in her chest if she put too much pressure on it. All the while she didn't take her eyes away from his even once, evaluating his every move. There was not much to assess though since he barely moved a muscle.

There was currently a war of fire and ice going on in his body. Icy shock trying to freeze him into place and his heart cruelly pumping fire through his veins. And in the end as it always does fire won and he leaned forward stiffly. Yoruichi was halfway across the table, in fact she had to prop herself up on her hands to keep from falling over while he had barely moved an inch. But it was enough for her. He had moved. And not away from her but towards her and in the next second he moved even closer slightly dipping his head down towards her. The slight doubt she never knew existed evaporated and was replaced by a glowing ember in her stomach.

With a sudden movement she lifted one of her legs across the table not caring for any of the paperwork she was currently crushing under her and she was right in front of him, one of her hands resting at the side of his neck. He twitched slightly at the contact but her ego could take that. She didn't know but this was the last bit of reluctance he had had left and as he felt her warm breath against his lips a small part of his mind wondered at the silence in his chest. He didn't have time to contemplate any of this as Yoruichi's fingers suddenly all but forced him down towards her and their lips met.

She was warm silk. The flames he had felt inside his chest cavity just moments ago where nothing compared to her. She wasn't burning and yet she was burning him. And when her lips moved against his in a familiar and at the same time excitingly foreign manner she won the war, which he had started the moment he saw her in his house for the first time in years. Of course he didn't know that yet but it was obvious by the way his eyes closed to savor every second. When he finally responded to her kiss she had long stopped thinking. The soft and wet friction of his lips, slightly colder than hers, against her own made her stomach clench so hard she could barely breathe enough to sustain consciousness. She found herself addicted to his taste and her mind raced to try to compare it to something familiar, but she found none. And when she felt his hand at her back slightly pressing her towards him, she realized what he hadn't. Victory was hers. Smiling into the kiss she briefly wondered how he could ever have doubted this.

Finally with a breath of hot air they separated. He opened his eyes, still slightly dazed and his cheeks flushed. Without letting him time to think or breathe she pulled him down again and with a burst of happiness realized, that she didn't have to use as much force as she did before. When their lips met this time he immediately responded. She threw herself closer into his arms as she felt him putting more pressure into their kiss than before. His lips almost harsh against hers. The muscles of his arms tensed around her and she could feel them jump at her touch.

Before she could really enjoy any of this though, he pulled away, turning his head away from her. Cheeks even more flaming than before, he stood up with a shaky breath, supporting his weight with one hand at the wall. His sudden fervor had startled him profoundly. Of course she wanted to continue this but she let him go. This was more than what she had hoped for and she knew that she wouldn't have to wait long. Not anymore. Not with the look he threw her just before leaving the room. His eyes had told her everything she needed to know. And he couldn't help himself, not when he saw her sprawled over his paperwork like this, with her dark skin glowing, purple locks falling across her back and her eyes inviting him back. She slowly traced her still wet lips with her thumb, equally dazed as he was.

While he tried to pull himself together when he walked through the corridor of his home, so as not to attract any attention from wandering maids, he decided that she was the one cheating.

* * *

** * **Katsuo is implying that she is already too fat and shouldn't eat the pudding. Of course he knows that she's not fat, he's simply teasing his mother.

****** If you're not familiar with this game, google Koi-koi.

Here is a brief explanation anyway: The set consists of 48 cards in which 4 cards represent each month. So there are 4 cards for January, February etc. Some of those cards are considered light cards as well. There is a moon and a sake cup card which is especially good for creating a combo with a high value.

In the beginning the one who draws the card with the earliest month becomes the dealer and is allowed to be the first to swap cards. He gives each player 8 cards and there is a pool of cards in the middle from which you can take a card if you have a card of the same month. You are not allowed to take a card if you don't have a card with the same month on your hand. The goal is to collect a specific combo of cards, which gives you points depending on their value. Some combos are valued higher than others. Once you have collected a combo of cards you're allowed to call quit which means you get your points and the round is over. The game consists of 12 rounds. Or you could call Koi-koi which means you continue the round to collect more combos, but when another player gets a combo before you do the round is over and the one who beat you gets double points. If you happen to have all cards of one month on your hand before the game even started the round ends automatically and you get 6 points. Each player starts with 50 points. The winner gets points. The loser loses the amount of points the other won.

You don't need to get the rules but I hope you got the idea.

******* The moon and sake cup combo

Amaya - grandmother (Night Rain), her laughter is based on that of a very good friend of mine...when she laughs you cannot not laugh. It's hilarious!

Hiroshi - grandfather (generous)

A great many thanks to all those who reviewed! I would write all your names down here but I appreciate every review so much it would take too much time to write them all down. But be assured that they're all very dear to me and they are one of the reasons why I have never given up on this story. I just couldn't bring myself to leave it unfinished with so many sweet people out there that like to read it. I'd like to apologize for the delay as well...but in the words of Rick Astley: Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down...

A separate thanks and greeting to my dear friend Peace in Chaos, the biggest ByaYoru fan I have ever met besides myself. Hugs to you 3

As always reviews are love. And they keep me going xD Cookies to all of you.


	11. Let's make a deal

Attention! Rating changed! This is a romance so obviously their physical relationship will play a big part in this, as it does in every adult relationship. In the future this will only increase so I suggest that everyone, who is not old or mature enough to read something that mentions physical love and desires, should drop this story now. To all the others: It would mean a lot to me if you could spare the time to tell me what you think of this story/chapter. *insert puppy eyes*.

* * *

"Mom?"

"Hm? What?"

Katsuo threw her a strange look over the book he was reading. She sat a few feet from him at the window and she never once took her eyes away from the path leading up to the Kuchiki manor.

"Is something wrong?"

Yoruichi pointedly looked away from the window. "No. Nothing at all. Why would you ask?"

He didn't buy it one second. "Ahuh." She came face to face with one of her own infamous smirks.

"Soooo... should I warn him that you're coming onto him tonight, or do you think he'll get that himself?"

Yoruichi only turned to look at her son in the most oblivious manner she could manage.

"Any more comments?"

"... … … Don't screw it up."

His reward was a pillow to the head.

* * *

He couldn't help the sigh escaping his lips as he finally settled into the hot water. It had been an exhausting day and he could feel the tension in his muscles as he leaned against the rough wall of his bath. Ever so slowly the hot water soothed over his skin and without consciously deciding for it he relaxed his shoulders. Sinking further down into the water Byakuya closed his eyes and leaned back his head.

The only sound filling the silence was his soft breathing and the splash of the water as he lifted his arm to wipe some wet strands of hair out of his face. Suddenly he felt really tired and the warm water only encouraged his fatigue. And just as he felt the tension in his shoulders dissolve completely, he remembered them once again. Her soft lips pressed to his. The way they smoothed over his, warm and enticingly.

It had been a long time since he had had any sort of human contact, not of this sort anyway. And he hated to admit it but the moment she had kissed him he had almost thrown everything he was overboard just to get more of that. Kami knows he had wanted it and a lot more. And now he couldn't stop thinking about it. He could almost feel her presence in front of him and her lips on his once again. The warmth of the bath didn't really help in erasing this illusion out of his mind. And much to his shame he could feel his body respond to that. A long time indeed...

The body of a man was a lot more honest than he liked sometimes and right now surrounded by the hot steaming water he was at his weakest. He could feel his temperature rising despite himself. Usually he didn't indulge in any of those desires but he couldn't resist any longer. He had deprived his body of any sort of release for a long time now and right now he was paying the price.

Cursing that demon of a woman he bit his lip in frustration. It wasn't fair that she could play him so easily and it was a great failure on his part that he lost to those emotions in the matter of seconds. People praised his steely control and yet she took it on a roller coaster ride every time she stayed in the same room as he did, or swayed her hips just the right way...

A groan escaped his lips and with a final exasperated sigh he gave in. One time couldn't hurt and the heat in his blood demanded it.

Submerging his hand into the water he let it rest on his lower stomach and he could feel the muscles tense in electric anticipation. Sweat dripped down his chest, mixing with the water of his bath and leaving a faint, fiery trail on his skin.

Clenching his eyes shut he finally reached down to end his suffering. He took in a shaky breath as he let his hand slide along his skin.

The muscles in his arm tensed to keep the motion even. If he was going to succumb to his body he might as well enjoy the ride. The now blazing water caressing him intensified the experience all the more and soon he was sure he had to end it quickly before he lost himself completely. With the now rhythmic splashing keeping him company he pressed his lips together to keep the telltale sounds from escaping his lips. He didn't want to attract any attention from wandering servants after all. Sweet electricity shot through his veins and he leaned forward, now pressing his knees against the ground of his giant bath tub.

...

Cold shock washed over him and his heart surely took a lot of damage from the sudden change of temperature, since it stopped beating altogether, when he heard the sound of the bathroom door sliding open.

It took him only the fraction of a second to snap his hand away from himself and spin around to take a look at this unwelcome intruder, all the while taking care to keep his lower body hidden in the water. Silently thanking the servant, who decided on an herbal bathing mix, which made it hard to make out anything beneath the water. The flash of bronze skin was enough for him to know who this intruder was but the ice in his veins had yet to dissolve and his heart yet to start beating, so this shock was simply the tip of the iceberg.

Both of them stared at each other for a few seconds.

He didn't dare think about the possibility that she might have seen more than he would have liked.

Yoruichi in the meantime wondered at the bright flush on his face and his shocked expression but after a while she dismissed it as a result of his hot bath and her sudden appearance. The smirk that appeared on her lips and the way she leaned against the open door, dressed in nothing but a white towel betrayed her true intentions. She definitely didn't walk in on him by mistake.

What did he do to deserve this purgatory? Her smirk and the fact that her towel revealed a lot more than he could take in his current position reminded him painfully of his unfinished business. And for a few seconds that throbbing was all he could concentrate on as it almost broke his resolve with every heartbeat.

Putting on a show just for him she started to slide the door shut.

Once he saw the swell of her hips and breasts move only in the slightest way to shut the door he looked away. He wasn't sure how he was going to react to this in his current state. Not when the cause of all this, the embodiment of his animalistic fantasy just made her way towards him almost naked.

He nearly groaned when he heard the door close with a final thud. Man knows true suffering when something like this turns him on.

Still smirking she made her way over to the bath tub. She was a little thrown off balance by the fact that he hadn't angrily demanded her exit yet. Something that she had counted on when she had devised her plan. But she wasn't going to let him see any of that.

And he wasn't even looking at her at all! Maybe she was losing her charms. Every man would at least look, wouldn't he?

Hesitating slightly she opened the towel she had wrapped around herself and let it fall to the ground deliberately noisy. "_Lets see how he'll handle that."_ Maybe she would have turned away from her plan by now seeing his obvious disinterest, but she had had enough of all this. She wasn't used to not getting what she wanted and she was tired of waiting.

Byakuya could only roll his eyes as he contemplated where he had gone wrong in his life and gripped the edge of the bath tub harder than ever before. His knuckles turning white in the effort.

Yoruichi was slightly disappointed when she saw him roll his eyes. He was probably too used to her behavior by now. Well she would have to pick it up slightly to get a reaction out of him then.

With both her legs submerged in the hot water she bend down to catch the water in her hand and let it run over the rest of her still dry body to accustom to the heat. Well at least that's what she wanted it to look like, she could have jumped in without it. With deliberate slow movements she slightly bend her knees so that she could spread the water across her bare chest.

Seeing her movements out of the corner of his eyes already proved to be too much and he closed his eyes again to keep his sanity in check. Even though not seeing anything and simply hearing the water splash down in little droplets made his mind burn with creativity. Leaning back against the cold tiles he hoped they would cool him down at least a little. But no matter how hard he tried to distract himself, by thinking of the paperwork he hadn't finished yet, he couldn't stop himself from feeling the throbbing grow even worse. The Inquisition would have been proud of those methods of torture she was applying.

"_She just wants to have some fun. Falling for her is a mistake." _The voice in his head had never been so quiet, so unsure. And he knew he wanted to take the risk.

Looking back at him she saw him lean his head back against the white tiles of his luxurious bathroom and frowned. Shaking her head in wonder she settled into the warm water since her show apparently wasn't doing her any good.

"_What's going on with him? He didn't even say anything yet. Is he trying to ignore me?" _That thought hurt her as much as it aggravated her pride. That's it. She was sick of those games, even though she loved games. And she knew that they were a good way to keep a relationship alive and spicy but it had to be established first after all!

She was a grown woman and she sure as heck wasn't going to let an opportunity like this slip by, at least not again. The last years of her life had been spent on making this decision. And you only regret those choices you didn't make after all. "_I'm not going to leave this bathroom without having you, Byakuya." _

The smirk on her face spoke of her newfound energy and the challenging glint in her eyes would have given Byakuya goosebumps had he looked. Reaching out for the unsuspecting Byakuya she let the tip of her finger dance up his arm.

"Why so silent?"*

He flinched violently at the contact and panic made his head swim. His eyes snapped open immediately and fixed on hers. Her eyes meanwhile widened only slightly, startled by his overdone reaction. His left hand had snatched hers away from his arm and he held her in a tight grip. Wondering at his hot temperature she quickly gained control of her expression to look at him nonchalantly.

"What do you think you're doing?" His voice appeared strangely tense and a little too low to count as a bland remark. And she found herself loving the sound.

"I'm just taking a bath." Annoyed by her casualty he rolled his eyes again. It actually helped him control himself a little better. "Can't you be decent once in your life and choose a bath unoccupied? Or at least one without a man inside?"

She smiled at the annoyed undertone. This was perfect. They were back on track. She could handle annoyance and she liked to work with that. It's a lot easier to handle than his tiring indifference.

Pushing her voice into a low purr she turned her body towards him, slowly wiping a few drops of water away from her chin. "But you're hardly just _a _man, Byakuya-bo."

Her reference to his old nickname proved more effective than she could tell from his minute reaction, but his teenage fantasies had been far too vivid for his body not to remember right at this second. And with all those sensations coming together he didn't know how to answer. He didn't meet her eyes, which struck her as very strange. Even though she was kind of sexually harassing him, he kept on reacting in a way she had not predicted. It was starting to unsettle her. If this kept on going she would have to improvise. "_Well sometimes war and love aren't so far apart apparently." _

Seconds passed and he still didn't look at her.

"Byakuya."

She almost blushed when she heard the edge of desperation in her own voice. Yoruichi Shihoin was everything but desperate.

He couldn't quite place the sound of her voice but it temporarily made him forget about his hopeless situation and he turned his head to look at her.

The intensity of her stare left him baffled. Relief flooded her. Judging from the guarded look in his eyes he was vary of her. Maybe she needed a different approach to all this.

She eased her face into a slightly gentler expression and inched closer. "Are you angry with me? You're usually not _this _silent." He took a deep breath and released it in a sigh. He knew he wasn't being fair but he wanted this way too much and he was afraid of the desire running through him. If he was being completely honest he didn't dislike it. It made him feel alive in a way he hadn't felt for years, but she had hurt him so many times he wasn't sure if he could take one more time. Especially not after he let her take away all of him.

"I..." She raised an eyebrow in anticipation and smiled to encourage him. "I... just didn't have anything to say. So why would I waste any words?"

She laughed softly and for a brief second he feared that the waterline that danced across her chest would finally show him everything.

"So talking with someone and doing small talk is a waste of your time?"

"I didn't say that."

They both stayed silent once again and Yoruichi wondered if this would turn into a habit. While she still contemplated how to proceed from here Byakuya started to move forward, as if to leave. Surprised Yoruichi grabbed his arm and halted his movements.

"What are you doing? You only have a few minutes on me in the bath. You didn't even have time to relax."

If Yoruichi only knew how non-relaxing this whole bath turned out to be she would laugh at the irony.

"I still have work to do..." Yoruichi almost burst out laughing when she heard his pathetic excuse. She knew he could lie better than that.

Putting more force into her grip she tried to coax him back. After a few more seconds he gave into the pressure and leaned back. He was starting to get weary and he was starting to think that it just wasn't worth the hassle.

Waiting till his back rested against the cool tiles once again she turned towards him completely. In the back of his mind he knew what was going to happen and his heart squeezed together. Sweet and frightening at the same time.

Sensing his resistance crumble, her own heartbeat picked up at the prospect that she was finally going to get what she wanted.

_This is it. _The moment she had waited for.

Moving towards him, only a few inches was all that was left between them. She lifted her hand out of the warm water to lay it onto his wet chest and was amazed by the heartbeat that pounded against her palm. It didn't take long for her heartbeat to match his pace and when she tried to make eye contact this time he didn't avoid her.

She could still see a faint resistance in his eyes. He meanwhile just had enough time to see the fire in hers spark into life as she swung one of her legs over his in a bold move, effectively lifting herself out of the water and exposing her chest to him. Now on her knees she still avoided touching him.

And he could feel it dieing. His resistance weary and weak to begin with was only a shadow of what it used to be. It wouldn't survive her touch. And he found himself succumbing to the flames a second time this night.

He could see that she knew she won. He almost laughed had he been the type to do so. She had completely overwhelmed him. She had won the battle before he had even realized it had started.

Leaning her face down to his she kissed him softly. Her warm lips against his reminded him of their previous kiss and all those conflicting thoughts left him. But they both knew that they were about to start something. And Byakuya had to admit that he wanted it.

It died. His last resort, his last objection to all of this was brutally crushed by her soft lips against his. In the end he was just a man.

Yoruichi meanwhile was unaware that Byakuya had already surrendered. Her heart was about to jump right out of her chest while she waited for any sort of reply from him. The answer she waited for came in the form of his hand that gripped her hair and instead of pushing her away he pressed her closer to him. And if his resolve hadn't already been torn apart it would have been annihilated when finally her knees gave way.

She gasped in surprise as she felt him against her thigh. He swallowed hard and his eyes almost fluttered shut when the level of his arousal sky rocketed once again. "_So I haven't lost my charm after all." _Giving him a dazzling smile she let her hands run across his chest.

Leaning forward, she pressed her chest up against his, so that she could whisper into his ear.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it?" Bullseye.

The wet contact of her breasts pressing against his racing heart made him feel just how long it had really been.

She really liked the way the muscles in his arms jumped when she let her fingers slide along them. Or the way his breath hitched when she pressed her thighs just a little closer together.

Scratch that. She **_loved _**it. Especially when she watched the water drip down his wet chest. He was an attractive man after all and she found herself savoring the difference between his body and her own. She was a powerful woman but she was all too aware of the fact that his purely physical superiority was something she secretly enjoyed. And she readily succumbed to his masculine air when he put one arm around her to push her tighter against him. Just when she tilted her head to the side to kiss him again, his lips were already on hers.

* * *

Awkward.

That was probably the only word that could describe the way he felt right now.

It was awkward to come into his bedroom this evening and seeing her lie on his bed so casually.

What made it more uncomfortable was the fact that he couldn't help but notice that her dark skin looked like satin against the brightness of his sheets. Especially since he knew how soft her skin really was and how smooth it had felt under his fingers just a few hours ago. And he still vividly remembered how the muscles of her thighs flexed when she moved on top of him...

Shaking his head he tried to ban this thoughts from his mind. Things were awkward enough now.

He had his back to her when he changed into his night clothes. Yoruichi meanwhile watched him intently.

He obviously didn't feel the need to leave the room to change anymore. Something that Yoruichi wrote down as an extremely positive sign. She hoped that it meant that he was more comfortable around her and would show her more of who he really was. Even though she already knew the answer, it was nice to know that he showed her voluntarily. And she'd like to see the woman who didn't appreciate the way his back muscles shifted underneath his skin when he undressed. The sassy woman had to refrain from licking her suddenly dry lips.

She quickly leaned back against her pillow just before he turned around. His eyes immediately snapped to her form on the bed and...was that disappointment he felt when she seemed almost indifferent to his presence?

He turned to the light switch and hesitated slightly, waiting for her to object. When she didn't, he simply switched off the light and walked towards the bed in complete darkness. His expensive carpet soft against his bare feet.

The soft noise of his sheets sounded unusually loud as he settled into bed.

The awkwardness reached new heights after he stopped moving and they just laid next to each other in the blackness of the room. No one said a word and both listened to the breathing of the other, trying to read any sort of emotion in the rhythm.

Almost half on hour passed like this.

"Let's make a deal." Her words loud in the quiet room.

Shifting underneath the heavy covers, Byakuya turned around to look at the woman beside him with raised eyebrows. She was staring at the ceiling and he could barely make out her features in the darkness of their..._his _bedroom. After a few more seconds of silence it was obvious that she waited for an answer.

"A deal?"

Was that a smile? Or was he imagining things in the dark? And what was this pressure on his chest? He blamed the darkness. It reinforced everything. Every slide of the sheets. Every small movement. Every breath. Every pause. Every feeling.

He listened to her shifting when she turned to face him. And she suddenly seemed a lot closer to him than she was before. Maybe it was the pressure in the air that made it appear that way. But he didn't have enough time to contemplate when she put her hand on his chest. A stark reminder of their previous activities that day. He preferred not to think about it or he might make more out of it than it really was. In the end it had been just simple sex. They were both adults and things like that happened. But if he was completely honest with himself he would realize that he hated the thought. Once again she didn't give him enough time to come to this realization.

"Yes. A deal. Let me define the parameter." Well _that_ certainly caught him off guard.

Yoruichi knew that judging from the startled pause she received in return. He obviously had no idea where she was going with this and she had the benefit of enjoying his full attention as well as his curiosity.

Logic and Order. That was nice. He could deal with that a lot better than with the conflict that she had evoked in him.

"If you insist. Let me hear those parameter of yours." She could tell that he was trying to appear indifferent.

"First of all Monogamy. Furthermore I am entitled to at least one cuddle session every day. I get exclusive rights to all of your kisses. I am allowed to be completely unreasonably once a month without you complaining. Additionally I am allowed to annoy you at work and every other place in existence. I get to show off with you and I get a daily report on any of your activities, which will be started by the question: 'And how was your day?' "

Her first word had already knocked all sense out of him. With a painfully racing heart and adrenaline rushing through her veins she just kept completely still and waited for him to answer in any way. His breathing slightly irregular, the seconds ticked by.

This was the one moment everything depended on. The seconds before had been a torture, but now that she had finally gotten those words out of her system the relief almost drowned her.

And yet the darkness pressed tighter against her chest cavity while she waited for his answer.

His voice was rough and she could barely make out his eyes, but they seemed to be focused on her entirely.

"That...That's a pretty long list."

She almost groaned. What sort of answer was that?! What was she supposed to answer to this?

"And...", he continued. She had been about to tell him how dense he could be sometimes but his words stopped her. "...it seems like there is a decisive advantage for you in this. You said it was a deal. Isn't that usually defined by conditions that are to the benefit of both sides? It's not really a deal if only one party agrees and benefits. So what's in for me?"

Was he seriously doing what she thought he was doing? He was joking around!

Propping herself up on her elbows she leaned closer towards him.

"Fine. What would move you to accept our little agreement?" He could hear the smirk in her voice even without seeing it, though he felt her breath on his neck and it made his head swim. Apparently it took him too long to gather his thoughts because Yoruichi took the initiative to speak again.

"I could make you an offer."

That was better. Accepting predetermined offers was a lot easier than to draft conditions of one's own. Formulating conditions required the display of your wishes and desires after all.

"What do you offer?"

Her answer was low and so determined and definite that he couldn't question her decisiveness.

"Me."

One word and his future was changed forever.

There it was. Everything he had dreamed of once on a silver plater. All he had to do was reach out and take it. There was really no question as to what he was going to do. She had already conquered him a few hours ago. She was leaning across his desk waiting for him to sign the surrender agreement she had put there along with a pen.

"Do you accept those conditions and the resulting partnership?" He could turn nowhere. All his allies had been destroyed and all he could do was reach for the pen to sign the peace treaty. His conqueror right in front of him.

"I ... accept."

It took her a few moments to digest what she had just heard. Had she doubted herself this much? She didn't really know what to do next. All of her plans had been directed to winning this that she never thought of what came immediately afterwards. And she certainly hadn't expected it to be so easy. She had barely pushed and he had given in. A strange kind of exhilaration came over her.

Whenever she saw women in movies act the way she felt right now she had called them silly schoolgirls. Giddy and weak in the knees. Not really attributes that fit her person. But then again...tonight didn't seem to be the night where you behaved normally. The steely resolve of Byakuya Kuchiki had failed tonight after all.

Slowly she scooted closer to him, burying her face in his warm shirt. There was probably only one thing she could do now. Enjoy her victory.

And boy did she enjoy it when she felt his hand press against her back, his arm encircling her. She could feel his hesitation, the slight apprehension in his movement. But that was bound to disappear soon.

They didn't say a word for quite a while until he felt her whole form shaking against him. Looking down he tried to make out her face in the dark.

"Yoruichi?"

With the sound of her name her chuckling grew into full blown laughter. He could only question her sanity.

After laughing for what felt like ten minutes she had great difficulties speakin while trying to fill her lungs with much needed air.

"This...is...so surreal."

Byakuya smiled in response. "You can put it that way."

After a few more seconds she finally calmed down enough to breathe properly. "That was **so** overdue."

He didn't answer as she settled down more securely in his arms, obviously bent on spending the night there. They laid like this in the darkness, which suddenly felt more like an ally than an enemy. He didn't know whether he could have pronounced those two words had she looked him in the eyes in broad daylight. Which was starngely cowardly for him but still true.

To his amazement he soon found her fast asleep, while his own racing thoughts kept him from even closing his eyes.

Surreal? That seemed like a keyword to describe their relationship. When he had woken up today he had been intent on pushing her out of his life and now...

Now they were obviously in a relationship and he had _agreed_ to it! At least if he didn't dream those last few hours ... ... ... What was wrong with him?

He had to admit it to himself. She was and always will be his one weakness. The one you can't escape from no matter what.

He had to speak it out loud and his whisper resounded in the bedroom.

"You're a fool, Byakuya Kuchiki."

His lips curled into a smile.

* * *

Finally! Finally they're official! I kinda felt that Byakuya would need clear cut edges. I don't think he's the type of man that would like to live with this whole stage of grey, where you don't know whether you're really dating or not. And I liked the idea of making it sound like some kind of business transaction. Feels like something that really fits them both in a way. Even though it was a lot more joking on Yoruichi's part.

* This reminded me so much of the joker's phrase: "Why so serious?" but I left it in anyway since I kinda like that connection.

flightingphoenix and to all the others who hate me for that incredibly late update: Once again, I am sorry, guys. Please forgive me. 3


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